Exhibit 10.9

PATENT ASSIGNMENT

This Patent Assignment is delivered pursuant to the Closing under that certain
Purchase Agreement (the “Agreement”) dated as of December 18, 2003, between
Aether Systems, Inc., as the “Seller”, and TSYS Acquisition Corp., as the
“Purchaser”. Capitalized terms used in this Patent Assignment have the same
meanings given to them in the Agreement.

The Seller has delivered this instrument signed by the Seller to enable the
Purchaser to file it with any appropriate governmental agency to indicate
ownership of the Patents described below and for the other purposes set forth in
this instrument. This instrument supplements and is in addition to all other
rights of the Purchaser under the Agreement and other instruments of transfer
delivered in connection with the Agreement.

For good and valuable consideration, receipt of which the Seller acknowledges,
and by signing and delivering this instrument, the Seller sells, assigns,
transfers, conveys, and delivers to the Purchaser all of the Seller’s right,
title, and interest in and to:

     (a)  the patents and patent applications specifically listed in Annex A to
this Patent Assignment; and

     (b)  the following properties and rights with respect to all patents and
patent applications so listed in Annex A:

          (1) the inventions claimed or described in the patents or
applications,

          (2) any patents in the United States and anywhere else in the world
and patent applications that have been or may be granted or filed, respectively,
with respect to those inventions, including without limitation all foreign
patents that may claim priority based on and correspond to the patents listed in
Annex A,

          (3) all divisions, renewals, reissues, continuations, extensions, and
continuations-in-part of the foregoing patents,

          (4) all income, royalties, damages, and payments due or payable to the
Seller with respect to the patents, including without limitation unpaid damages
and payments for past, present, and future infringements of any patent, and

          (5) all rights to sue and recover damages and payments for past,
present, and future infringements of any of the patents, including the right to
fully and entirely replace the Seller in all related matters.

The foregoing rights in and under the patents shall apply to the full end of
their terms as fully as the Seller would have held the same in the absence of
this assignment. As of the date set forth below, the Purchaser has succeeded to
all right, title, and standing of the Seller to (a) receive all rights and
benefits pertaining to the patents described above, and (b) commence, prosecute,
defend and settle all claims and take all actions that the Purchaser, in its
sole discretion, may elect in relation to the patents and rights described
above. This Patent Assignment (a) is irrevocable and effective upon the Seller’s
signature to and delivery of a manually signed copy of this instrument or
facsimile or email transmission of the signature to this instrument in
connection with the Closing, if and only if the Closing is completed,
(b) benefits and binds the parties to the Agreement and their respective
successors and assignees, (c) does not modify or affect,

 

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and is subject to, the provisions of the Agreement, and (d) may be signed in
counterparts as provided in Section 12.12 of the Agreement.

The undersigned has signed this Patent Assignment on January 13, 2003.

Aether Systems, Inc.:

     

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      By:   /s/ David S. Oros    

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Name:   David S. Oros    

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Title:   Chief Executive Officer    

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STATE OF MARYLAND
CITY OF BALTIMORE

On                 before me, Patricia C. Sweeting (the undersigned notary),
personally appeared David S. Oros personally known to me (or proved to me on the
basis of satisfactory evidence) to be the person(s) whose name(s) is/are
subscribed to the within instrument and acknowledged to me that he/she/they
executed the same in his/her/their authorized capacity(ies), and that by
his/her/their signature(s) on the instrument the person(s), or the entity upon
behalf of which the person(s) acted, executed the instrument.

WITNESS my hand and official seal.

[seal]

Patricia C. Sweeting

Notary Public

 

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Annex A

                          FILING                 TITLE   DATE   SERIAL #   ISSUE
DATE   PATENT #   OWNER/DIVISION

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REGISTERED U.S.                                           Method and System for
Providing Formatted Information via a 2-Way Communication System          
10/16/01   US6,304,746B1   Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       Method
and System for Conducting Real-Time Electronic Commerce            07/1/03  
US6,587,838   Aether Systems, Inc./EMS Transmitting Updated Information        
  01/04/2000   6,011,954   Sila Technology Limited/EMS                      
REGISTERED FOREIGN                                          
IFX/Datatransmission (Danish patent - ‘Fremgangsmade til transmission af data
fra en sender til en eller flere modtagere’)           1/13/1997   PR171571  
Sila Technology Limited/EMS                       IFX/Datatransmission
(Registered EP1 - designated country: Germany)(‘A Method of Transmitting Data
from a Transmitter to One or More Receivers’)           5/3/2000   EP 0731964  
Sila Technology Limited/EMS                       IFX/Datatransmission
(Registered EP - designated country: France)(‘A Method of Transmitting Data from
a Transmitter to One or More Receivers’)           5/3/2000   EP 0731964   Sila
Technology Limited./EMS                       IFX/Datatransmission (Registered
EP - designated country: United Kingdom)(‘A Method of Transmitting Data from a
Transmitter to One or More Receivers’)           5/3/2000   EP 0731964   Sila
Technology Limited/EMS                       PENDING U.S. APPLICATIONS          
                                Method for Providing Vendor Notification
Marketing in
Electronic Communication Network   01/25/99   09/236,510           Aether
Systems, Inc./EMS                       Apparatus for Providing Vendor
Notification   01/25/99   09/237,289           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS        
              Method and Apparatus for Storing Real-Time Text Messages  
8/30/2001   09/941,582           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                      
System for Automated, Mid-Session, User-Directed,
Device-to-Device Session Transfer System   9/17/2001   09/953,408          
Aether Systems, Inc./EMS

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1 EP = European Patent

 

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                          FILING                 TITLE   DATE   SERIAL #   ISSUE
DATE   PATENT #   OWNER/DIVISION

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Multikeyed Table Implementable on a Personal Digital Assistant
System, Method and Computer Program Product for Providing   10/16/2000  
09/688,160           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS Server Discovery Services during a
Startup Sequence   11/8/2000   09/707,960           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS    
                  System and Method for Re-Directing Requests from Browsers for
Communication over Non-IP Based Networks   10/30/2000   09/698,181          
Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       System and Method for Developing
Applications in Wireless and Wireline Environments   11/3/2000   09/704,535    
      Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       Site Mining Stylesheet
Generator   12/15/2000   09/736,167           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS          
            Run-Time Engine Implemented on a Computing Device Allowing
Synchronization of Records during Application Execution   10/16/2000  
60/240,087           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       Messaging
Method and Apparatus for Sending and Receiving Messages in a Client Server
Environment over Multiple Wireless and Wireline Networks   10/24/2000  
09/694,297           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       System and
Method to Publish Information from Servers to Remote Monitor Devices   1/24/2001
  09/767,951           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       A System
and Method for Servers to Send Alerts to Connectionless Devices   11/28/2000  
09/723,285           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       A System,
Method and Computer Program Product for Maintaining Program State over Wireless
Networks that Dynamically Workload Balance Messages Across Multiple Servers  
1/23/2001   09/767,266           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                      
A Method and System for Deploying Content to Wireless Devices   11/13/2000  
09/709,487           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       Messaging
Method and Apparatus for Routing Messages in a Client Server Environment over
Multiple Wireless and Wireline Networks   12/20/2000   09/739,844          
Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       Messaging Method and Apparatus
including a Protocol Stack that Corresponds Substantially to an Open System
Interconnect (OSI) Model and Incorporates a Simple Network Transport Layer  
12/20/2000   09/740,040           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                      
Web Page Content Translator   11/8/2000   09/707,770           Aether Systems,
Inc./EMS                       System, Method and Apparatus for Automatically
and Dynamically Updating Options, Features, and/or Services Available to a
Client Device   3/10/2000   09/523,168           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS      
                Service Chaining: a Mechanism for Optimizing the Invocation of
Computer Based Services Deployed in a Distributed Computing Environment  
12/27/2001   10/026,887           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                      
System for Efficiently Handling Cryptographic Messages
Containing Nonce Values in a Wireless, Connectionless
Environment without Compromising Security   8/21/2001   09/932,982          
Aether Systems, Inc./EMS

 

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                          FILING                 TITLE   DATE   SERIAL #   ISSUE
DATE   PATENT #   OWNER/DIVISION

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System and Method for Automated, Software-Based Session Coordination of Data
into a Single Session Context   10/8/2002   10/265,740           Aether Systems,
Inc./EMS                       Run-Time Engine Implemented on a Computing Device
Allowing Synchronization of Records during Application Execution   10/16/2001  
09/977,686           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       System for a
Configurable Open Database Connectivity Conduit   11/6/2001   09/985,879        
  Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       System for an Open Architecture
Development Platform with Centralized Synchronization   11/6/2001   09/985,878  
        Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       System for a Run-Time
Engine Capable for Pager Capable Remote Device   11/6/2001   09/985,880        
  Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       Routing Protocol Selection for
an Ad Hoc Network   12/28/2001   10/028,267           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS  
                    System, Method and Apparatus for Utilizing Transaction
Databases in a Client-Server Environment   10/11/2002   10/268,665          
Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                       PENDING FOREIGN APPLICATIONS2    
                                      Run-time Engine Implemented on a Computing
Device Allowing Synchronization of Records during Application Execution  
10/16/2001   PCT/US01/32193           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS                  
    System for Optimizing the Invocation of Computer-Based Services Deployed in
a Distributed Computer Environment   12/272002   PCT/US02/41492           Aether
Systems, Inc./EMS                       Routing Protocol Selection for an Ad Hoc
Network   12/27/2002   PCT/US02/41491           Aether Systems, Inc./EMS        
              IFX/Datatransmission (EP Application; divisional application based
on EP 0731964)   12/2/1994           99202686.4   Sila Technology Limited/EMS  
                    Sila (EP Application; EP regional phase of PCT/DK00/00363;
‘Method of Transmitting Data Items to a Number of Mobile Stations, a Mobile
Station and a Storage Module’)   7/4/2000           00941946.6   Sila Technology
Limited/EMS                       Sila (EP Application; EP regional phase of
PCT/DK00/00364; ‘Method of Transmitting Data Items to a Number of Mobile
Stations, a Mobile Station and a Storage Module’)   7/4/2000          
00941947.4   Sila Technology Limited/EMS                       IFX -Danish
Patent Application (divisional application based on Danish Patent No. PR171571)
  7/20/1995           PA199500850   Sila Technology Limited/EMS                
      Sila - Norwegian Patent Application (national phase of PCT/DK00/00363)  
7/4/2000           20016416   Sila Technology Limited/EMS                      
Sila - Norwegian Patent Application (national phase of PCT/DK00/00364)  
7/4/2000           20016421   Sila Technology Limited/EMS

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2 In December 2003 foreign patent counsel submitted paperwork to the relevant
patent registries to record the change in name from Sila Technology Limited to
Aether Technology Limited, for those patent applications listed in this section
as being owned by Sila Technology Limited.