This is the September 2011 installment of Sutherland’s “Financial Services Patent Holding Company Update.” These updates are intended to provide our readers general information about the activities of patent holding companies (or non-practicing entities) in the financial services and e-commerce industries. If the articles provided herein are of interest, or if additional information is desired, please contact us.

“There’s an App for That”—But You May Have to Pay to Use It

If your business offers an iPhone or smartphone application that can show a user a map of service locations relative to the location of the phone, read on. A recently formed non-practicing entity (“NPE”) claims to hold the exclusive licensing rights to a patent that allegedly covers this technology. Even if this doesn’t sound exactly like what you do, if you offer iPhone or smartphone apps, you might want to read on—NPEs have a way of interpreting patent claims very broadly.