Streetspace, Inc v. Google, Inc. et al
Filing
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MOTION to Dismiss by Admob, Inc, Apple, Inc., Google, Inc., Jumptap, Inc, Millennial Media, Inc, Navteq Corporation, Nokia Corporation, Nokia Inc, Quattro Wireless, Inc. (Attachments: # 1 Memo of Points and Authorities)(Rousseau, Timothy) (lmt).
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Kurt M. Kjelland (CSB 172076)
kkjelland@goodwinprocter.com
GOODWIN PROCTER LLP
4365 Executive Drive
Third Floor
San Diego, CA 92121
Tel: (858) 202-2728
Fax: (858) 457-1255
Douglas J. Kline
dkline@goodwinprocter.com
William A. Meunier
wmeunier@goodwinprocter.com
GOODWIN PROCTER LLP
Exchange Place
53 State Street
Boston, MA 02109
Tel: (617) 570-1000
Fax: (617) 523-1231
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Timothy J. Rousseau
trousseau@goodwinprocter.com
GOODWIN PROCTER LLP
The New York Times Building
620 Eighth Avenue
New York, NY 10018
(212) 813-8800
Fax: (212) 355-3333
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Attorneys for Defendant JUMPTAP, INC.
Additional parties and counsel listed in the signature block
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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STREETSPACE, INC.,
Plaintiff,
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v.
GOOGLE INC., et al.
Defendants.
Case No: 3:10-cv-01757-LAB-MDD
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF
DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO
DISMISS
Date: May 9, 2011
Time: 11:15 a.m.
Judge: Hon. Larry Alan Burns
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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I.
SUMMARY OF ARGUMENT .......................................................................................... 1
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II.
BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................ 2
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III.
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STREETSPACE’S CLAIMS FOR INDIRECT INFRINGEMENT AGAINST ALL
DEFENDANTS, AND ALL CLAIMS AGAINST JUMPTAP AND MILLENNIAL,
SHOULD BE DISMISSED UNDER RULE 12(b)(6)........................................................ 4
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A.
Legal Standards....................................................................................................... 4
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B.
Streetspace’s Allegations of Direct Infringement Against Millennial Media and
Jumptap Should Be Dismissed Because They Do Not Identify Any Allegedly
Infringing Products or Services .............................................................................. 5
C.
Streetspace’s Indirect Infringement Allegations Are Insufficiently Stated and Fail
to Meet the Pleading Requirements of Twombly and Iqbal.................................... 7
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IV.
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................... 9
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
Page(s)
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CASES
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Ashcroft v. Iqbal,
129 S. Ct. 1937 (2009)..................................................................................................... passim
Associated Gen. Contractors of Cal., Inc. v. Carpenters,
459 U.S. 519 (1983)...................................................................................................................6
Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly,
550 U.S. 544 (2007)......................................................................................................... passim
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9
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Bender v. LG Elecs. U.S.A., Inc.,
No. C-09-02114-JF, 2010 WL 889541 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 11, 2010) .......................................1, 5
Christopher v. Harbury,
536 U.S. 403 (2002)...................................................................................................................4
Franks Casing Crew & Rental Tools, Inc. v. Weatherford Int’l, Inc.,
389 F.3d 1370 (Fed. Cir. 2004)..................................................................................................6
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Gen-Probe, Inc. v. Amoco Corp.,
926 F. Supp. 948 (S.D. Cal. 1996).........................................................................................5, 6
Hackford v. Babbitt,
14 F.3d 1457 (10th Cir. 1994) ...................................................................................................8
Hewlett-Packard Co. v. Intergraph Corp.,
No. C 03-2517 MJJ, 2003 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26092 (N.D. Cal. Sept. 6, 2003).....................5, 6
Interval Licensing LLC v. AOL, Inc.,
No. C10-1385, 2010 WL 5058620 (W.D. Wash. Dec. 10, 2010)..............................................1
Realtime Data, LLC v. Morgan Stanley,
No. 6:09CV326, 2010 WL 2403779 (E.D. Tex. June 10, 2010) ...........................................5, 6
Ricoh Co., Ltd. v. ASUSTeK Computer, Inc.,
481 F. Supp. 2d 954 (W.D. Wis. 2007) .....................................................................................1
Vita-Mix Corp. v. Basic Holding, Inc.,
581 F.3d 1317 (Fed. Cir. 2009)..................................................................................................8
Xpoint Techs. Inc. v. Microsoft Corp.,
No. 09-628, 2010 WL 3187025 (D. Del. Aug. 12, 2010)......................................................4, 8
STATUTES
35 U.S.C. § 271................................................................................................................................7
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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OTHER AUTHORITIES
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Fed. R. Civ. P. 8.......................................................................................................................1, 4, 9
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Fed. R. Civ. P. 12................................................................................................................... passim
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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Defendants Google Inc. (“Google”); AdMob, Inc. (“AdMob”); Apple Inc. and Quattro
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Wireless, Inc. (collectively “Apple” ); Nokia Corporation, Nokia Inc. and Navteq Corporation
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(collectively the “Nokia Defendants”); Millennial Media, Inc. (“Millennial Media”); and
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JumpTap, Inc. (“Jumptap”) (collectively “Defendants”) move pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil
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Procedure 12(b)(6) to dismiss Plaintiff Streetspace, Inc.’s (“Streetspace”) First Amended
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Complaint for Patent Infringement (“First Amended Complaint”; Dkt. No. 30) for alleged
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infringement of U.S. Patent No. 6,847,969 (“the ’969 Patent”) for failure to state a claim upon
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which relief can be granted. The First Amended Complaint includes many of the same defects as
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Streetspace’s original Complaint (“Complaint”; Dkt. No. 1) and should be dismissed with
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prejudice without leave to amend.
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I.
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SUMMARY OF ARGUMENT
Streetspace’s First Amended Complaint fails to satisfy the pleading standards under
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Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a), as articulated in Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S.
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544 (2007), and Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 129 S. Ct. 1937 (2009). Under Rule 8(a), the complaint must
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include “a ‘showing,’ rather than a blanket assertion, of entitlement to relief.” Twombly, 550
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U.S. at 555 n.3. This “demands more than an unadorned, the-defendant-unlawfully-harmed-me
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accusation.” Iqbal, 129 S. Ct. at 1949 (citing Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555). This standard applies
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equally to complaints alleging patent infringement. See, e.g., Interval Licensing LLC v. AOL,
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Inc., No. C10-1385, 2010 WL 5058620 (W.D. Wash. Dec. 10, 2010) (“The Court disagrees with
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Plaintiff’s argument that Twombly and Iqbal do not apply to patent suits.”); Bender v. LG Elecs.
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U.S.A., Inc., No. C-09-02114-JF, 2010 WL 889541, at *5 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 11, 2010); Ricoh Co.,
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Ltd. v. ASUSTeK Computer, Inc., 481 F. Supp. 2d 954, 959 (W.D. Wis. 2007).
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The pleading standard for direct patent infringement under the Supreme Court’s Twombly
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and Iqbal decisions requires, at a minimum, the specific identification of the allegedly infringing
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products or services. Like Streetspace’s original Complaint, its First Amended Complaint fails
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to state a claim for direct infringement against Millennial Media and Jumptap because
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Streetspace again fails to identify a single Millennial Media or Jumptap product or service that
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allegedly infringes the ’969 Patent. Streetspace’s repeated failure to state a claim for direct
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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infringement is no mere oversight—Streetspace cannot specify any Millennial Media or Jumptap
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service that directly infringes the ’969 Patent because each ’969 Patent claim requires a
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“terminal,” and neither Millennial Media nor Jumptap sells or otherwise provides a “terminal”
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with any of their services. As a result, Streetspace has now twice failed to state a claim for direct
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infringement against Millennial Media and Jumptap, and those claims should be dismissed with
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prejudice.
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Streetspace’s allegations of indirect infringement in the First Amended Complaint against
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all of the Defendants are also inadequate. Despite having a second bite at the apple, and limiting
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its allegations of indirect infringement to only the active inducement type (dropping its claims
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for the contributory infringement type of indirect infringement asserted in the original
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Complaint), Streetspace has still not adequately plead indirect infringement. In the First
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Amended Complaint, Streetspace includes many additional facts, some of which are possibly
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relevant, many of which are completely irrelevant and apparently intended only to cast the
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Defendants in a negative light. Importantly, Streetspace failed to include in the First Amended
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Complaint allegations of fact sufficient to allow the Court to draw a reasonable inference that
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any of the Defendants are liable for indirect infringement. Specifically, Streetspace has failed to
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plead any facts sufficient to allow the Court to draw a reasonable inference that any of the
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Defendants actually knew of the ’969 Patent prior to the filing of the suit.
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In light of such facially inadequate assertions of infringement, pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6),
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Defendants respectfully request that this Court dismiss (i) Streetspace’s direct infringement
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claims against Millennial Media and Jumptap, and (ii) Streetspace’s indirect infringement claims
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as to all of the Defendants.
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II.
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BACKGROUND
On August 23, 2010, Streetspace filed its original Complaint against Defendants for
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alleged infringement of the ’969 Patent. On January 18, 2011, Defendants timely filed a joint
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motion pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) to dismiss Streetspace’s Complaint
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for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted, or in the alternative, for a more
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definite statement pursuant to Rule 12(e). (Dkt. No. 21). In response, Streetspace improperly
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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filed its First Amended Complaint on February 25, 2011, and its opposition to Defendants’
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motion on February 28, 2011 (Dkt. No. 32).
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On March 3, 2011, the Court entered an Order to Show Cause, ordering Streetspace to
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show “why its amended complaint should not be stricken from the docket, and why the pending
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motions to dismiss and transfer venue should not remain on the Court’s calendar for a March 14,
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2011 hearing.” (Dkt. No. 35 at 2.) On March 4, 2011, Streetspace filed its response to the Order
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to Show Cause, asserting that “[t]he proposed First Amended Complaint was inadvertently filed
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without leave”, and requested leave to file it. (Dkt. No. 39 at 2.) Defendants filed their reply in
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support of their motion on March 7, 2011 (Dkt. No. 42). On March 8, 2011, the Court granted
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Streetspace leave to file the First Amended Complaint, and denied Defendants’ motion to
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dismiss as moot. (Dkt. No. 43.)
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Streetspace alleges in its First Amended Complaint that it owns and has standing to sue
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for infringement of the ’969 Patent. First Amended Compl. ¶ 51. A review of the ’969 Patent
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shows that, among other limitations, each independent claim recites a “terminal . . . [having] an
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identification code,” a “database,” and “a program for displaying personalized information” or
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otherwise “providing selected advertisement and online services to said consumer.” ’969 Patent
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claims 1, 12, and 19 (emphasis added).
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As to Millennial Media and Jumptap, Streetspace does not name or otherwise specify a
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single product or service that purportedly infringes its patent. Instead, just as in the original
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Complaint, Streetspace makes a vague assertion of direct infringement against “a method and/or
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system for providing personalized information and/or targeted online advertising services based
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on location, consumers’ profiles and/or usage history.” Id. ¶¶ 175-179, 189-194. This
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boilerplate recitation of certain limited aspects of the ’969 Patent leaves Millennial Media and
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Jumptap to speculate as to what product or service is actually at issue in the suit.
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As for its deficient indirect infringement allegations, Streetspace alleges with respect to
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Google, for example, that “Google has had actual knowledge of the ’969 patent since at least
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August 23, 2010”, i.e., the filing date of the original Complaint. First Amended Compl. ¶ 72.
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Similar allegations of indirect infringement are made against the other Defendants. Id. ¶¶ 90, 91,
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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109, 110, 123, 124, 138, 139, 152, 153, 167, 168, 181, 182, 196, and 197. But knowledge of the
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patent after the filing of a complaint is not sufficient for pleading the requisite knowledge for
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indirect infringement. See Xpoint Techs. Inc. v. Microsoft Corp., No. 09-628, 2010 WL
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3187025, *6 (D. Del. Aug. 12, 2010).
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III.
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STREETSPACE’S CLAIMS FOR INDIRECT INFRINGEMENT AGAINST ALL
DEFENDANTS, AND ALL CLAIMS AGAINST JUMPTAP AND MILLENNIAL,
SHOULD BE DISMISSED UNDER RULE 12(b)(6)
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A.
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A complaint must contain “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the
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pleader is entitled to relief.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). However, Rule 8 “does not unlock the
Legal Standards
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doors of discovery for a plaintiff armed with nothing more than conclusions.” Iqbal, 129 S. Ct.
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at 1950. “A pleading that offers ‘labels and conclusions’ or ‘a formulaic recitation of the
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elements of a cause of action will not do.’” Id. at 1949 (citing Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555).
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Unless the plaintiff has pleaded “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its
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face,” and thereby “nudged [his] claims . . . across the line from conceivable to plausible,” the
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complaint “must be dismissed.” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570 (dismissing complaint pursuant to
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Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6)).
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In considering a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6), a court must assume all factual
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allegations in a complaint as true and view them in the light most favorable to the plaintiff.
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Christopher v. Harbury, 536 U.S. 403, 406 (2002). However, pleadings containing “no more
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than conclusions[] are not entitled to the assumption of truth.” Iqbal, 129 S. Ct. at 1950. Only
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when there are “well-pleaded factual allegations” may a court “assume their veracity and then
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determine whether they plausibly give rise to an entitlement to relief.” Id. A claim has facial
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plausibility “when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable
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inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id. at 1949 (citing Twombly,
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550 U.S. at 556). The “sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully” is insufficient.
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Id. Such a complaint “has alleged—but has not ‘show[n]’—‘that the pleader is entitled to
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relief.’” Id. at 1950 (quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2)).
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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B.
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Streetspace’s Allegations of Direct Infringement Against Millennial Media
and Jumptap Should Be Dismissed Because They Do Not Identify Any
Allegedly Infringing Products or Services
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Following Iqbal, a complaint must “at a minimum, [include] a brief description of what
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the patent at issue does, and an allegation that certain named and specifically identified products
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or product components also do what the patent does, thereby raising a plausible claim that the
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named products are infringing.” LG Elecs., 2010 WL 889541, at *6. Applying Twombly and
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Iqbal, the court in LG Electronics reasoned that only with a brief description of the patent and an
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allegation of specifically identified products that fits the description of what the patent does,
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would the pleading “provide enough specificity for the defendant to formulate a response,” and
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“permit the Court to ‘draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the
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misconduct alleged.’” Id. (citing Iqbal, 129 S. Ct. at 1949).
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With respect to the patent infringement allegations against Millennial Media and
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Jumptap, Streetspace has failed to identify a single infringing service. Streetspace’s general
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assertion of infringement against Millennial Media and Jumptap “for providing personalized
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information and/or targeted online advertising services based on location, consumers’ profiles
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and/or usage history,” is far too vague to state a claim of patent infringement that is “plausible on
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its face.” Iqbal, 129 S. Ct. at 1949.
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This court and others have properly dismissed patent infringement claims where plaintiffs
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have not identified specific products or services. See, e.g., Gen-Probe, Inc. v. Amoco Corp., 926
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F. Supp. 948, 962 (S.D. Cal. 1996) (granting Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal because “pointing vaguely
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to ‘products and/or kits’ . . . does not provide adequate notice as required by the Rules, and does
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not reflect the reasonable inquiry required by the Rules”); LG Elecs., 2010 WL 889541, at *4
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(requiring plaintiff to specifically identify allegedly infringing products and finding list of
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allegedly infringing product types to be insufficient); Hewlett-Packard Co. v. Intergraph Corp.,
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No. C 03-2517 MJJ, 2003 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26092, at *6 (N.D. Cal. Sept. 6, 2003) (dismissing
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plaintiff’s complaint that defendant’s “software and hardware products” infringed the patent
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because the allegations did not provide defendant with “fair notice” as to what claims to defend);
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Realtime Data, LLC v. Morgan Stanley, No. 6:09CV326, 2010 WL 2403779, at *5 (E.D. Tex.
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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June 10, 2010) (granting Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal because plaintiff’s allegations did not
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“specifically identify any accused products or services” and finding the identification of “data
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compression products and/or services” too vague).
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By failing to identify any specific service, Streetspace has not put Millennial Media and
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Jumptap on fair notice as to what services are subject to the infringement claim. Streetspace’s
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allegations against Millennial Media and Jumptap are even more vague than the allegations at
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issue in Gen-Probe, LG Electronics, Hewlett-Packard and Realtime Data. As the Supreme
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Court has cautioned, “a district court must retain the power to insist upon some specificity in
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pleading before allowing a potentially massive factual controversy to proceed.” Associated Gen.
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Contractors of Cal., Inc. v. Carpenters, 459 U.S. 519, 528 n.17 (1983). Millennial Media and
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Jumptap should not be required to engage in a time-consuming investigation without knowing
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the specific services alleged to infringe the ’969 Patent. As such, the court should at a minimum
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dismiss the First Amended Complaint against Millennial Media and Jumptap.
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Moreover, the dismissal should be with prejudice. In granting Streetspace leave to file an
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amended complaint in the face of the Defendants’ first motion to dismiss, the Court already has
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provided Streetspace the opportunity to amend its complaint to fix the foregoing deficiencies.
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Streetspace’s First Amended Complaint, however, still does not specify any service provided by
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Millennial Media or Jumptap that directly infringes the ’969 Patent. It cannot because direct
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infringement “requires that each and every limitation set forth in a claim appear in an accused
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product,” Franks Casing Crew & Rental Tools, Inc. v. Weatherford Int’l, Inc., 389 F.3d 1370,
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1378 (Fed. Cir. 2004) (internal citation omitted). Among other limitations, each claim in the
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’969 patent requires a “terminal.” ’969 patent claims 1, 12, and 19. Neither Millennial Media
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nor Jumptap sells, uses, or otherwise provides a “terminal” when providing any of their services
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to their customers. Thus, even under Streetspace’s incorrect and baseless apparent construction
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of “terminal,” it cannot identify any specific service provided by Millennial Media or Jumptap
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that includes a “terminal”. Indeed, as admitted in the First Amended Complaint, the alleged
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“terminal” is provided and used by the consumer, not Millennial Media or Jumptap:
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
•
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“Streetspace is informed and believes and based thereon alleges that Millennial
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Media utilizes server software and/or tracking cookies located on consumer
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terminals in order to identify consumers and target ads.” First Amended Compl. ¶
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179.
•
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“Streetspace is informed and believes and based thereon alleges that Jumptap
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utilizes server software and/or tracking cookies located on consumer terminals in
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order to identify consumers and target ads.” First Amended Compl. ¶ 194.
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Thus, although Streetspace alleges that Millennial Media and Jumptap directly infringe
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the ’969 Patent by “providing [some unspecified] services,” it does not and cannot identify any
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specific service provided by these defendants in which Millennial Media and Jumptap sell, use,
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offer or otherwise provide the required “terminal.” Streetspace has not stated and cannot state a
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claim for direct infringement against Millennial Media and Jumptap, and those claims should be
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dismissed with prejudice.
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C.
Streetspace’s Indirect Infringement Allegations Are Insufficiently Stated and
Fail to Meet the Pleading Requirements of Twombly and Iqbal
Streetspace also fails to sufficiently allege claims for inducement under 35 U.S.C.
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§ 271(b). The First Amended Complaint does not adequately allege the requisite pre-filing
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knowledge of the ’969 Patent on the part of any Defendant.
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There are two types of indirect patent infringement: active inducement under 35 U.S.C.
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§ 271(b) and contributory infringement under 35 U.S.C. § 271(c). In its original Complaint,
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Streetspace accused all Defendants of both types of indirect infringement. Now, with its First
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Amended Complaint, Streetspace has not asserted any claim for contributory infringement, but
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still asserts a claim for active inducement against each Defendant. Despite having had the
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benefit of a do-over with its First Amended Complaint, Streetspace has still failed to plead any
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facts that would allow a court to draw a reasonable inference that any of the Defendants is liable
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for indirect infringement. Accordingly, Streetspace’s allegations “do not suffice,” and its First
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Amended Complaint should be dismissed under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6) for failure to state a
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claim upon which relief can be granted, at least as to all claims for indirect infringement.
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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“Inducement requires a showing that the alleged inducer knew of the patent¸ knowingly
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induced the infringing acts, and possessed a specific intent to encourage another’s infringement
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of the patent.” Vita-Mix Corp. v. Basic Holding, Inc., 581 F.3d 1317, 1328 (Fed. Cir. 2009)
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(citing DSU Med. Corp. v. JMS Co., 471 F.3d 1293, 1304 (Fed. Cir. 2006 (en banc in relevant
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part) (emphasis added). Streetspace admits that it had no factual basis to allege that any of the
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Defendants knew of the ’969 Patent prior to the filing of the Complaint, and that it can allege
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only that “Defendants knew of the ’969 patent since at least August 23, 2010 (the filing date of
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the original complaint).” (Response to Order to Show Cause, Dkt. No. 39, at 3). But that
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allegation is inadequate as a matter of law: “knowledge after filing of the present action is not
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sufficient for pleading the requisite knowledge for indirect infringement.” Xpoint Techs. Inc., v.
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Microsoft Corp., No. 09-628, 2010 WL 3187025, *6 (D. Del. Aug. 12, 2010) (emphasis added)
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(citing Mallinckrodt v. E-Z-Em, Inc., 670 F.Supp.2d 349, 354 n.1 (D. Del. 2009)). If the law
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were otherwise, a plaintiff could fabricate a claim of indirect patent infringement simply by
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filing a complaint, and then—perhaps the next day—filing an amended complaint alleging that
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Defendants were on notice of the patent-in-suit at least as early as the date of the original
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complaint. Thus, by its own admissions, Streetspace has not and cannot plead a legally sufficient
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claim for indirect infringement against any Defendant.
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As to Google, Streetspace asserts that:
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Streetspace is informed and believes and based thereon alleges that Google
operates a search engine and database called Google Patents comprising patents
and published patent applications from the United States Patent & Trademark
Office. All of the approximately 7 million U.S. patents have been put in the
database including the ’969 patent.
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First Amended Compl. ¶ 72. But the mere presence of the ’969 Patent within the comprehensive
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Google Patents database is not sufficient to support a reasonable inference that anyone at Google
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actually was aware of the existence of the ’969 Patent. Thus, this factual assertion is not
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sufficient to support any inference that Google had actual awareness of the ’969 Patent prior to
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the filing of the Complaint. See, e.g., Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555, 570 (holding that a complaint
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must “raise a right to relief above the speculative level” and must “state a claim to relief that is
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plausible on its face.”); Hackford v. Babbitt, 14 F.3d 1457, 1465 (10th Cir. 1994) (holding that
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
1
federal courts “are not bound by conclusory allegations, unwarranted inferences, or legal
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conclusions” stated in a complaint).
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Streetspace asserts that it should, nonetheless, be entitled to a discovery fishing
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expedition because “it remains to be seen whether any Defendant actually knew of the ’969
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patent . . . , which will be the subject of discovery.” (Response at 3.) But “remains to be seen” is
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not a cognizable placeholder allowing Streetspace to take discovery to ascertain whether the
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Defendants had any knowledge of the ’969 Patent prior to Streetspace’s Complaint. Either
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Streetspace can plead that Defendants had the requisite knowledge of the ’969 Patent at the time
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it filed the original Complaint, or it cannot. The pleading standard under Rule 8 “does not
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unlock the doors of discovery for a plaintiff armed with nothing more than conclusions.” Iqbal,
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129 S. Ct. at 1950. By admitting that it does not have any factual basis to allege that Defendants
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knew of the ’969 Patent prior to the filing of the original Complaint, Streetspace’s allegations are
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nothing more than “formulaic recitations of the elements” and specifically prohibited by the
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Supreme Court. Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555. Further, because by Streetspace’s own admissions
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that “it remains to be seen whether any Defendant actually knew of the ’969 patent,” (Response
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at 3), any amendment would be futile and the inducement claims should be dismissed with
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prejudice.
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IV.
CONCLUSION
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Streetspace’s First Amended Complaint does not and cannot state a claim for direct
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infringement against defendants Millennial Media and Jumptap, and those claims should be
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dismissed with prejudice. In addition, Streetspace’s First Amended Complaint does not and
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cannot to state a claim for indirect patent infringement upon which relief can be granted against
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any of the Defendants, and those claims should be dismissed without leave to amend.
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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Dated: March 22, 2011
By: /s/ Timothy J. Rousseau
Kurt M. Kjelland (CSB 172076)
kkjelland@goodwinprocter.com
GOODWIN PROCTER LLP
4365 Executive Drive
Third Floor
San Diego, CA 92121
Tel: (858) 202-2728
Fax: (858) 457-1255
Douglas J. Kline
dkline@goodwinprocter.com
William A. Meunier
wmeunier@goodwinprocter.com
GOODWIN PROCTER LLP
Exchange Place
53 State Street
Boston, MA 02109
Tel: (617) 570-1000
Fax: (617) 523-1231
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Timothy J. Rousseau
trousseau@goodwinprocter.com
GOODWIN PROCTER LLP
The New York Times Building
620 Eighth Avenue
New York, NY 10018
Tel: (212) 813-8800
Fax: (212) 355-3333
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Attorneys for Defendant JUMPTAP, INC.
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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/s/ Christopher C. Campbell
John S. Kyle (CA 199196)
jkyle@cooley.com
COOLEY LLP
4401 Eastgate Mall
San Diego, CA 92121
Tel: (858) 550-6000
Fax: (858) 550-6420
Frank V. Pietrantonio
fpietrantonio@cooley.com
Christopher C. Campbell
ccampbell@cooley.com
COOLEY LLP
One Freedom Square
11951 Freedom Drive
Reston, VA 20190-5656
Tel: (703) 456-8000
Fax: (703) 456-8100
Attorneys for Defendant
MILLENNIAL MEDIA, INC.
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/s/ Luann L. Simmons
George A. Riley (SB# 118304)
griley@omm.com
Luann L. Simmons (SB# 203526)
lsimmons@omm.com
Anne E. Huffsmith (SB# 236438)
ahuffsmith@omm.com
O’MELVENY & MYERS LLP
Two Embarcadero Center, 28th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94111
Tel: (415) 984-8700
Fax: (415) 984-8701
Attorneys for Defendants APPLE INC. and
QUATTRO WIRELESS, INC.
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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/s/ David Heskel Ben-Meir
David Heskel Ben-Meir (CSB 192028)
d.ben-meir@alston.com
ALSTON & BIRD LLP
333 South Hope Street, 16th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90071
Tel: (213) 576-1133
Fax: (213) 576-1100
Attorney for Defendants NOKIA, INC., NOKIA
CORPORATION and NAVTEQ, INC.
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/s/ Shawn E. McDonald
Matthew B. Lowrie
mlowrie@foley.com
FOLEY & LARDNER LLP
111 Huntington Avenue, Suite 2600
Boston, MA 02119-7610
Tel: (617) 342-4000
Fax: (617) 342-4001
Shawn E. McDonald (CSB 237580)
semcdonald@foley.com
Justin E. Gray
jegray@foley.com
FOLEY & LARDNER LLP
3579 Valley Centre Drive, Suite 300
San Diego, CA 92130
Tel: (858) 847-6700
Fax: (858) 792-6773
Attorneys for Defendants
GOOGLE INC. and ADMOB, INC.
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
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The undersigned hereby certifies that a true and correct copy of the above and foregoing
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document has been served on March 22, 2011, to all counsel of record who are deemed to have
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consented to electronic service via the Court’s CM/ECF system per Civil Local Rule 5.4. Any
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counsel of record who have not consented to electronic service through the Court’s CM/ECF
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system will be served by electronic mail, first class mail, facsimile and/or overnight delivery.
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Timothy J. Rousseau
Timothy J. Rousseau
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MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ RULE 12(B)(6) MOTION TO DISMISS
CASE NO. 3:10-CV-01757-LAB-MDD
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