InvesTrex LLC v. News Corp

I. Executive Summary and Procedural Information

• Parties & Counsel:
  • Plaintiff: InvesTrex LLC (Delaware)
  • Defendant: News Corporation (Delaware)
  • Plaintiff’s Counsel: Napoli Shkolnik LLC; Rabicoff Law LLC
• Case Identification: 1:23-cv-00206, D. Del., 02/24/2023
• Venue Allegations: Venue is alleged to be proper in the District of Delaware because Defendant is incorporated there, maintains an established place of business in the District, and has allegedly committed acts of patent infringement in the District.
• Core Dispute: Plaintiff alleges that certain unidentified products of Defendant infringe a patent related to integrating financial data tools within a social networking environment.
• Technical Context: The technology at issue involves online platforms that combine social networking features (like forums or chat) with financial investment tools, allowing users to discuss and research financial instruments.
• Key Procedural History: The complaint does not mention any prior litigation, Inter Partes Review (IPR) proceedings, or licensing history related to the patent-in-suit.

Case Timeline

Date	Event
2010-06-03	Priority Date for U.S. Patent No. 8,458,084
2013-06-04	U.S. Patent No. 8,458,084 Issues
2023-02-24	Complaint Filed

II. Technology and Patent(s)-in-Suit Analysis

U.S. Patent No. 8,458,084 - "Investor social networking website"

• Patent Identification: U.S. Patent No. 8,458,084, "Investor social networking website", issued June 4, 2013.

The Invention Explained

• Problem Addressed: The patent asserts that at the time of invention, existing social networking sites were directed toward personal or general professional use, and online trading websites did not allow for robust communication between individual investors (’084 Patent, col. 1:55-63; col. 2:1-6). Investors lacked a unified platform to communicate with peers about specific financial instruments while also accessing data and executing trades (’084 Patent, col. 1:46-54).
• The Patented Solution: The invention is an online social networking system designed for investors. Its central feature is the automatic conversion of a "ticker symbol" typed by a user within a social feature (like a chat room or forum) into a "prefix key" or hyperlink (’084 Patent, col. 4:3-19). Clicking this hyperlink initiates a "synoptic display" of financial data for the corresponding instrument without leaving the social environment, thereby integrating real-time data analysis directly into user conversations (’084 Patent, Abstract; col. 9:18-29). The system also describes features for managing portfolios, forming investment groups, and linking to trading houses (’084 Patent, col. 2:49-54; col. 2:60-65).
• Technical Importance: The described technology sought to bridge the gap between social media and online trading platforms, creating a specialized environment where investment ideas could be shared and vetted with immediate access to relevant market data (’084 Patent, col. 2:13-21).

Key Claims at a Glance

• The complaint states it asserts "Exemplary '084 Patent Claims" identified in an attached chart, but does not specify them in the main body (Compl. ¶11). Claim 1 is the first independent method claim.
• Independent Claim 1:
  • maintaining a computerized social networking system having a plurality of users;
  • facilitating receipt of a social networking message from a first user for communication to a second user, the message containing a ticker symbol as input;
  • automatically converting the ticker symbol within the message into a hyperlink;
  • causing to display the communicated message where the hyperlink appears as the ticker symbol and is operative to initiate a synoptic display of financial data internal to the system.
• The complaint does not explicitly reserve the right to assert dependent claims, but refers generally to "one or more claims of the '084 Patent" (Compl. ¶11).

III. The Accused Instrumentality

Product Identification

• The complaint does not name any specific accused products, methods, or services. It refers to "the Defendant products identified in the charts incorporated into this Count below (among the 'Exemplary Defendant Products')" (Compl. ¶11). These charts were filed as Exhibit 2 and are not included in the provided complaint document.

Functionality and Market Context

• The complaint does not provide sufficient detail for analysis of the accused instrumentality's functionality or market context.

IV. Analysis of Infringement Allegations

The complaint alleges that the "Exemplary Defendant Products" infringe the "'084 Patent" by practicing the claimed technology, and it incorporates by reference claim charts from Exhibit 2 to support this allegation (Compl. ¶16-17). As Exhibit 2 is not provided, a detailed claim chart analysis is not possible. The narrative infringement theory is that the accused products "satisfy all elements of the Exemplary '084 Patent Claims" (Compl. ¶16).

No probative visual evidence provided in complaint.

• Identified Points of Contention: Based on the patent language and the general nature of the allegations, the infringement analysis raises several questions.
  • Scope Questions: A central question will be whether any functionality within the accused News Corporation products constitutes a "social networking message" as contemplated by the patent. Further, it raises the question of whether any data display in the accused products meets the definition of an "internal" "synoptic display" as required by the claims.
  • Technical Questions: A key factual question will be whether the accused products perform the specific step of "automatically converting the ticker symbol within the message into a hyperlink" (’084 Patent, col. 10:20-22). The evidence will need to show not just the display of financial data, but this specific process of converting user-input text into an interactive hyperlink within a messaging or forum context.

V. Key Claim Terms for Construction

• The Term: "synoptic display"

• Context and Importance: This term appears in the dispositive final element of independent claim 1. The infringement analysis will depend on whether the data display triggered in an accused product is merely a link to an external page or constitutes an "internal" "synoptic display." Practitioners may focus on this term because its scope determines whether a wide range of data presentations (e.g., simple pop-ups, embedded charts) or only a specific, comprehensive data dashboard, as shown in the patent's figures, would infringe.

• Intrinsic Evidence for Interpretation:

  • Evidence for a Broader Interpretation: The term itself is not explicitly defined. The summary of the invention describes it generally as a "synopsis of market data" (’084 Patent, col. 2:30-31), which could suggest any summary view of data would suffice.
  • Evidence for a Narrower Interpretation: The detailed description and figures provide a specific example of a "synoptic display" (element 460 in FIG. 5) that is quite detailed, including a graphical price chart (402), a table of numerous financial data points like bid/ask, volume, and market cap (414), and a list of related news headlines (416). A defendant may argue that the term should be limited to a similarly comprehensive, multi-part data presentation.

• The Term: "social networking message"

• Context and Importance: This term defines the context in which the claimed invention operates. Its construction is critical because it will determine what types of user communications fall within the claim scope. The case may turn on whether this term is broad enough to cover any user-generated content on a website or is limited to specific communication modalities like chat or forums.

• Intrinsic Evidence for Interpretation:

  • Evidence for a Broader Interpretation: The patent speaks broadly of a "social networking system" where users "meet and communicate with other like-minded members" (’084 Patent, col. 2:17-20). This could support an interpretation that includes a wide array of communications.
  • Evidence for a Narrower Interpretation: The patent repeatedly provides specific examples of the "message" occurring in an "intra-system chat message" or an "intra-system forum post message" (’084 Patent, col. 10:30-32). The specification also distinguishes these social interactions from simply researching investments, suggesting the "message" must occur within a communicative, rather than merely informational, context (e.g., FIG. 3, elements 160 vs. 154).

VI. Other Allegations

• Indirect Infringement: The complaint alleges induced infringement, stating that Defendant distributes "product literature and website materials inducing end users and others to use its products in the customary and intended manner that infringes the '084 Patent" (Compl. ¶14).
• Willful Infringement: Willfulness is alleged based on Defendant’s continuation of infringing activities after having "actual knowledge" of the patent and infringement from the service of the complaint and its attached claim charts (Compl. ¶13-14).

VII. Analyst’s Conclusion: Key Questions for the Case

• A primary issue will be one of evidence and specificity: once the accused products are identified, a core evidentiary question will be whether they actually perform the claim-required function of automatically converting a user-inputted ticker symbol inside a "social networking message" into an interactive hyperlink that launches an internal data display. The complaint's lack of specificity on this process is a central ambiguity.
• The case will also likely involve a question of definitional scope: can the term "social networking message," which the patent illustrates with examples like chat rooms and forums, be construed to cover the specific type of user-generated content and communication that occurs on the accused News Corporation products? The outcome may depend on whether the accused functionality is more akin to a simple search query or a true peer-to-peer social interaction as described in the patent.