Soverain Software LLC holds patents related to the "shopping cart" checkout method in use on many e-commerce websites, including Newegg. It filed lawsuits against a long list of companies who use this familiar system for facilitating a virtual online point of exchange.
In a case filed against Newegg, Soverain was successful in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, but after Newegg sppealed, it lost in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
The appeals court sided with Newegg on the grounds that the three patents in question referenced an obvious method of transaction.
"Petitioner's notorious 'shopping cart' patent merely applies the common sense concept of a shopping cart to the Internet," Newegg argued in a filing with the Supreme Court.
The top court in the U.S. must have agreed because it decided not to review the case.
"The witch is dead, hurray," Lee Cheng, chief legal office for Newegg, said.
"We are very, very pleased that the Supreme Court has recognized ... these patents should never have been granted in the first place. What we have showed in the Soverain case is the fighting back works."
Katharine Wolanyk, President of Soverain, said the firm was disappointed with the Supreme Court's decision, adding that it's a really tough time to be a patent holder.
Written by: James Delahunty @ 13 Jan 2014 17:49
