Alpha Modus Corp v. MNTN Inc

I. Executive Summary and Procedural Information

• Parties & Counsel:
  • Plaintiff: Alpha Modus, Corp. (Florida)
  • Defendant: MNTN, Inc. (Texas)
  • Plaintiff’s Counsel: Prince Lobel Tye LLP
• Case Identification: 1:25-cv-01466, W.D. Tex., 12/31/2025
• Venue Allegations: Venue is alleged to be proper in the Western District of Texas because Defendant maintains a regular and established place of business within the district and has committed acts of patent infringement there.
• Core Dispute: Plaintiff alleges that Defendant’s Connected TV (CTV) advertising platforms and services infringe three patents related to methods for monitoring and analyzing consumer behavior in real-time to provide personalized marketing and engagement.
• Technical Context: The technology at issue addresses the challenge for physical retailers to compete with online counterparts by using monitoring devices and data analysis to understand and influence in-store consumer behavior in real-time.
• Key Procedural History: This filing is a First Amended Complaint. The complaint alleges Defendant has been aware of the patents-in-suit and their alleged infringement at least since the filing of the original complaint. Plaintiff also notes it has entered into intellectual property licensing agreements outside of litigation.

Case Timeline

Date	Event
2013-07-19	Priority Date for ’571, ’890, and ’731 Patents
2019-07-23	’571 Patent Issued
2021-06-22	’890 Patent Issued
2024-07-02	’731 Patent Issued
2025-12-31	First Amended Complaint Filed

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

U.S. Patent No. 10,360,571 - *"Method For Monitoring And Analyzing Behavior And Uses Thereof,"* issued July 23, 2019

The Invention Explained

• Problem Addressed: The patent’s background section identifies the challenge faced by brick-and-mortar retailers from online competition, particularly the phenomenon of "showrooming," where consumers inspect products in-store but purchase them online (’571 Patent, col. 1:41-48). Retailers lack the real-time consumer data available to online sellers to influence purchasing decisions before the point of sale (Compl. ¶19).
• The Patented Solution: The invention proposes a method and system that use "information monitoring devices," such as video cameras, within a physical location to gather real-time data about shoppers, including demographic characteristics (age, gender), sentiment (emotional state), and tracking information (movement) (’571 Patent, col. 3:9-22; Abstract). This data is analyzed in real-time to provide a response, such as personalized advertising on a display or a digital coupon, to enhance the shopping experience and influence a purchase (Compl. ¶18, ¶21). Figure 1 of the patent illustrates the system architecture, showing various monitoring devices in a retail store connected to a cloud server for analysis (’571 Patent, FIG. 1).
• Technical Importance: This technology sought to provide physical retailers with data-driven marketing capabilities analogous to those used by e-commerce platforms, enabling personalized and timely interventions in a brick-and-mortar environment (Compl. ¶20).

Key Claims at a Glance

• The complaint asserts independent Claim 1 (Compl. ¶93).
• Essential elements of Claim 1 include:
  • Using one or more information monitoring devices (including video image devices) to gather information about persons at a location.
  • Gathering specific information types: a demographic characteristic (e.g., gender, age), a sentiment characteristic, and a tracking characteristic (e.g., movement, eye movement).
  • Providing an opt-out option to the persons being monitored.
  • Analyzing the gathered information in real time, excluding data from persons who have opted out.
  • Providing a real-time response based on the analysis, selected from a group including engaging the person via a display, sending a communication to a second person (e.g., a store employee), providing marketing/advertising, or providing a coupon.
• The complaint does not explicitly reserve the right to assert dependent claims.

U.S. Patent No. 11,042,890 - *"Method And System For Customer Assistance In A Retail Store,"* issued June 22, 2021

The Invention Explained

• Problem Addressed: The patent addresses the need for brick-and-mortar retailers to adapt to consumer behavior influenced by digital technology by better understanding and responding to how customers interact with specific products in real-time (Compl. ¶40).
• The Patented Solution: The invention describes a method using information monitoring devices to gather data specifically about a customer's interaction with products in a retail store (’890 Patent, Abstract). This includes gathering "object identification information" of a product a person is interested in and "sentiment information" of the person with respect to that product (Compl. ¶42). The system analyzes this information in real-time to manage inventory and provide appropriate responses, such as directing a person to a location to interact with the product or sending a digital coupon (’890 Patent, col. 17:20-46).
• Technical Importance: The method provides a more granular analysis focused on specific product interactions, enabling real-time, targeted customer assistance and dynamic inventory management based on observed consumer interest and sentiment (Compl. ¶41).

Key Claims at a Glance

• The complaint asserts independent Claim 1 (Compl. ¶117).
• Essential elements of Claim 1 include:
  • Using information monitoring devices to gather information about a person at a retail store.
  • Gathering "object identification information of a product that the person is interested in purchasing" and "sentiment information of the person with respect to the product."
  • Analyzing the information in real time to manage inventory of products.
  • Providing a real-time response based on the analysis, selected from a group including sending a communication directing the person to a product location, engaging the person via a display, sending a communication to a second person, providing marketing/advertising, or providing a coupon.
• The complaint does not explicitly reserve the right to assert dependent claims.

U.S. Patent No. 12,026,731 - *"Method For Personalized Marketing and Advertising of Retail Products,"* issued July 2, 2024

• Patent Identification: U.S. Patent No. 12,026,731, "Method For Personalized Marketing and Advertising of Retail Products," issued July 2, 2024 (Compl. ¶54, ¶57).
• Technology Synopsis: This patent claims a method for personalized marketing that involves obtaining an information analysis of a person's shopping activities, including product interaction information. The method then involves tracking the person's location using a second set of monitoring devices and, based on that location, providing a communication via an interactive device that includes a retail store location and a product-specific message such as an advertisement, coupon, or purchase option (Compl. ¶59, ¶66).
• Asserted Claims: Independent Claim 1 (Compl. ¶141).
• Accused Features: The accused services are alleged to track consumer locations and, based on analyses of their shopping activities, provide targeted communications such as coupons, marketing messages, and purchase options (Compl. ¶137, ¶139-140).

III. The Accused Instrumentality

Product Identification

The accused instrumentalities are Defendant MNTN’s “Connected TV” (“CTV”) technology platforms and services, including MNTN Matched™, Verified Visits™, Next Gen TV, and other CTV and Performance TV products (Compl. ¶75, ¶88).

Functionality and Market Context

• The complaint alleges that the accused technology provides streaming advertising to consumers based on information gathered about their shopping activities, such as activity at an online store (Compl. ¶75). It is alleged to utilize Artificial Intelligence to create audience models based on consumer demographic information to predict future consumer behavior and deliver targeted advertising on CTV platforms (Compl. ¶78).
• Defendant’s services are marketed as making CTV advertising "measurable, precise, and performance-driven" in a manner comparable to search and social advertising (Compl. ¶77).

IV. Analysis of Infringement Allegations

Because the complaint references claim chart exhibits that were not provided with the complaint, the infringement theory is summarized below in prose based on the narrative allegations.

’571 Patent Infringement Allegations

The complaint alleges that the Accused Products directly infringe at least Claim 1 of the ’571 Patent (Compl. ¶93). The infringement theory appears to map the patent’s retail store environment to the context of CTV advertising. The complaint alleges the Accused Products utilize "one or more information monitoring devices," identified as "CTV's associated with consumers," to gather information about people at a "location" (Compl. ¶89). These systems are allegedly connected to servers and databases for analysis (Compl. ¶90) and collect the claimed demographic, sentiment, and tracking characteristics of persons (Compl. ¶91). The complaint further alleges the Accused Products provide an opt-out option to consumers and analyze the information of those who have not opted out (Compl. ¶92). Figure 2 of the complaint illustrates an example of the claimed data gathering, depicting a system analyzing a person's face to determine gender, age, and sentiment characteristics (Compl. p. 4).

’890 Patent Infringement Allegations

The complaint alleges direct infringement of at least Claim 1 of the ’890 Patent (Compl. ¶117). The allegations for this patent largely mirror those for the ’571 Patent, stating that the Accused Products use monitoring devices at a location (a consumer's CTV) connected to a server to collect demographic, sentiment, and tracking data (Compl. ¶113-115). However, Claim 1 of the ’890 Patent specifically requires "gathering object identification information of a product that the person is interested in purchasing" and analyzing that information to "manage inventory" (’890 Patent, cl. 1). The complaint’s infringement counts do not provide specific factual allegations detailing how the accused CTV platform performs these particular functions.

Identified Points of Contention

• Scope Questions: The complaint’s theory raises a fundamental question of claim scope: does the term "location" as used in the patents, which are described in the context of a physical "retail store," read on a consumer’s home where a CTV is located, and does a CTV system constitute the claimed "information monitoring devices"?
• Technical Questions: A primary technical question is how the accused CTV platform performs the specific data gathering steps recited in the claims. The complaint does not detail the mechanism by which a CTV gathers "sentiment characteristic" or "eye movement" as required by the ’571 Patent, or more critically, how it gathers "object identification information of a product that the person is interested in purchasing" as required by the ’890 Patent.

V. Key Claim Terms for Construction

The Term: "information monitoring devices" (from Claim 1 of the ’571 and ’890 Patents)

• Context and Importance: The definition of this term is central to the dispute. The patents’ specifications describe embodiments primarily in a physical retail environment using devices like cameras, sensors, and kiosks. The infringement allegations contend that "CTV's associated with consumers" are such devices. The viability of the infringement case may depend on whether this term can be construed broadly enough to cover a home television and its associated data-gathering ecosystem.
• Intrinsic Evidence for Interpretation:
  • Evidence for a Broader Interpretation: The ’571 Patent specification provides a broad list of potential devices, including "computing devices, user input and output devices, displays, POS devices, cameras, sensors; WIFI devices; in-store customer devices; output devices; system for communicating to user devices, and kiosks" (’571 Patent, col. 4:56-62). This list may support a construction that is not limited to any specific physical embodiment like a camera.
  • Evidence for a Narrower Interpretation: The figures and detailed descriptions in both patents heavily emphasize a physical retail context. Figure 1, for example, explicitly labels a "Retail Store" containing cameras (103), kiosks (106), and digital signs (107) as the environment of the invention (’571 Patent, FIG. 1; col. 9:22-41). This context may support a narrower construction tied to devices operating within a commercial, public, or semi-public physical space.

The Term: "gathering object identification information of a product that the person is interested in purchasing" (from Claim 1 of the ’890 Patent)

• Context and Importance: This term distinguishes the ’890 Patent and is critical to proving infringement. Practitioners may focus on this term because the complaint lacks specific factual allegations explaining how the accused CTV platform performs this function. The construction will determine the required specificity of product identification.
• Intrinsic Evidence for Interpretation:
  • Evidence for a Broader Interpretation: The specification suggests the system can "promote products that are similar to the ones the system has determined the customer is interested in" (’890 Patent, col. 12:21-23). This could be argued to encompass identifying interest through broader means than physical interaction, such as tracking online browsing of product pages, which is a functionality of CTV advertising platforms.
  • Evidence for a Narrower Interpretation: The specification describes this element in the context of physical product interaction, stating the system is capable of "determining when customers pick up and put down products, how long they hold the product, and ultimately what product they walked off with" using cameras (’890 Patent, col. 12:11-14). This language may support a narrower construction requiring observation of a user's physical or direct digital interaction with a specific product representation.

VI. Other Allegations

Indirect Infringement

The complaint alleges induced infringement for all three patents, asserting that Defendant knowingly induces its customers to use the Accused Products in a manner that infringes (Compl. ¶103, ¶127, ¶151). The basis for knowledge and intent is alleged to be Defendant's awareness of the patents since at least the filing of the original complaint, combined with Defendant's promotions and instructions for its products (Compl. ¶107, ¶131, ¶155).

Willful Infringement

Willfulness is alleged for all three patents. The allegations are based on Defendant’s alleged knowledge of the patents and their infringement since the filing of the original complaint, and its subsequent continued infringement with "blatant disregard for Alpha Modus's patent rights" (Compl. ¶98, ¶122, ¶146).

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

• A core issue will be one of definitional scope: can key claim terms like "location" and "information monitoring device", which are rooted in the patents' descriptions of physical retail stores with cameras and kiosks, be construed to cover a consumer's home CTV and the associated ecosystem of online data collection?
• A key evidentiary question will be one of technical functionality: what evidence will be presented to demonstrate that the accused CTV advertising platform performs the specific, multi-part data gathering functions required by the claims—particularly the gathering of "sentiment" and "eye movement" for the ’571 Patent and, most critically, "object identification information of a product" for the ’890 Patent?