NEW YORK, NY–(Marketwire – Feb 14, 2012) – Augme Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: AUGT), (“Augme®”) (“the Company”), a technology and services leader in interactive media marketing that offers the only patented and innovative end-to-end mobile marketing platform, today announced that a pre-trial conference has resulted in AOL and Time Warner being ordered by the Court to submit discovery by May 1, 2012. This will move the case closer to trial, while at the same time the other two patent and one trademark infringement cases against AOL proceed.
A summary of recent developments in the three cases against AOL, as well as those against Gannett, Time Warner and LucidMedia Networks follows:
Tacoda, Inc. and AOL, Inc. In 2007, Augme filed a lawsuit against Tacoda, Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, seeking damages for alleged infringement of Augme-owned U.S. Patent Nos. 6,594,691 (“Method and System for Adding Function to a Web Page”) and 7,269,636 (“Method and Code Module for Adding Function to a Web Page”). AOL was added as a party defendant subsequent to its acquisition of Tacoda. On September 6, 2011, Judge McMahon issued a Supplemental Claims Construction ruling. On November 14, 2011, Judge McMahon issued an order granting in part and denying in part Defendant Tacoda’s motion for summary judgment. The Court held that Augme could not prove literal infringement under that Court’s claim construction ruling previously issued. However, the Court reserved judgment on the issue of whether Augme could prove infringement under the doctrine of equivalents. Pursuant to Court order, Augme provided further briefing as to whether the Data Agent combined with Data Tag employed in Defendants’ advertising network operates in essentially the same manner as claimed within the patents-in-suit. If the Court agrees with Augme’s position, the case will proceed to trial.
AOL, LLC, Time Warner, Inc., and Platform-A, Inc. On September 10, 2008, the Company filed a complaint against AOL, LLC in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, seeking damages for alleged infringement of its trademark BOOMBOX RADIO. On January 21, 2009, the Company filed a First Amended Complaint against AOL, LLC, Time Warner, Inc. and Platform-A, Inc., for trademark infringement relating to the mark BOOMBOX RADIO, and infringement of the Company’s U.S. Patent Nos. 6,594,691 and 7,269,636. The case was transferred to the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York and subsequently stayed.
In December 2011, the Court ordered the parties to a pretrial conference on February 1, 2012. At that conference, the Court ordered the parties to begin discovery with respect to the patent issues and placed the parties into the District Court’s Patent Pilot Program. Both parties are to provide the discovery contemplated pursuant to the Patent Pilot Program by May 1, 2012, at which time a further pretrial conference will be held. The Court ordered the parties to submit a status report on their discovery efforts by April 20, 2012. With respect to the trademark issues, the parties scheduled mediation March 30, 2012 at a location to be agreed upon and, if unsuccessful, are to report back to the Court with a proposed schedule for the case within 30 days from the completion of the mediation.
Gannett Co., Inc.; LucidMedia Networks, Inc.; and AOL, Inc. On April 29, 2011, Augme filed a complaint against Gannett Co., Inc.; LucidMedia Networks, Inc.; and AOL, Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, seeking damages relating to the alleged infringement of the Company’s U.S. Patent Nos. 7,783,721 (“Method and Code Module For Adding Function to a Web Page”) and 7,831,690 (Appliance Metaphor For Adding Function to a Web Page”). On July 26, 2011, that case was moved to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York where it is currently pending.
On June 24, 2011, LucidMedia Networks, Inc. filed a counterclaim suit against Augme in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. On January 23, 2012, LucidMedia and Augme agreed on a preliminary settlement of all issues, and the Court entered an order staying all proceedings.
“The Court-ordered discovery from Time Warner and the other defendants will provide data we need for our ongoing analysis and assessment of damages resulting from AOL’s infringing activity of four patents in three separate cases,” stated Augme Technologies, Inc. Chief Executive Officer, Paul Arena. “The data will add to our analysis of the operations and accumulated damages of Time Warner’s activities, which has been extensive. The progression of these cases and our recent settlement activity are central to the execution of our intellectual property (“IP”) licensing strategy. We welcome the further validation of our IP, which will accelerate our licensing efforts.”
