Source: https://www.scribd.com/document/212819824/Constant-Contact-v-Umbanet
Timestamp: 2017-08-17 19:34:05
Document Index: 544345286

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 2201', '§ 1391', '§ 101', '§ 112', '§ 101', '§ 101', '§ 112']

Constant Contact v. Umbanet | Declaratory Judgment | Title 35 Of The United States Code
Description: Constant Contact v. Umbanet
CONSTANT CONTACT, INC., )
UMBANET, INC.,
) C.A. No. _ ______ _
Plaintiff Constant Contact, Inc. ("Constant Contact'') files this complaint for
declaratory judgment against Defendant Umbanet, Inc. ("Umbanet") and alleges as follows:
1. Constant Contact is a Delaware corporation, with its principal place of
business located at 1601 Trapelo Road, Waltham, MA, 02451.
2. Umbanet is a Delaware corporation, with its principal place of business
located at 325 Riverside Drive, New York, NY, 10025.
3. Plaintiff seeks a declaratory judgment that U.S. Patent Nos. 7,076,730 ("the
'730 Patent," attached as Ex. A) and 7,444,374 (''the '374 Patent," attached as Ex. B) are invalid
and are not infringed by the use of Plaintiffs Email Marketing and other commercial email
services. The relief sought is necessary because Defendant has sued one of Plaintiff's customers,
Englewood Wine Merchants, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey,
alleging that Englewood Wine Merchants has infringed the ' 730 and '374 Patents. (Case 1:12-
cv-05849-RMB-KMW (D.N.J.).) Plaintiff's customers, including Englewood Wine Merchants,
use Plaintiff's Email Marketing product and other conunercial email services to market their own
products and services. Umbanet's lawsuit against Englewood Wine Merchants has placed a
cloud over Plaintiffs Email Marketing and other commercial email services, has caused at least
one of Plaintiff's customers to seek relief from Plaintiff, and has created a justiciable controversy
between Constant Contact and Umbanet.
4. Constant Contact provides an Email Marketing product and other
commercial email services to its customers. Constant Contacfs Email Marketing product and
other commercial email services allow its customers to create materials which may be distributed
electronically to recipients.
5. Englewood Wine Merchants ("EWM") is the business name of one of
Plaintiffs customers that subscribes to the Email Marketing service. The actual customer of
Plaintiff is Gettenberg & Wellisch, L. L.C., which operates under the business name Englewood
Wine Merchants, and which operates the Englewood Wine Merchants email service accused of
infringement. On information and belief, Umbanet believes that by suing in the name of the
EWM business, it has successfully sued Plaintiffs customer. For convenience, throughout the
remainder of this Complaint, "EWM" refers to both the customer of Plaintiff, and the entity sued
by Umbanet, even though one is an actual business and one is an assumed name for. the actual
6. On September 18, 2012, Umbanet filed a complaint against EWM in the
United District Court for the District of New Jersey, alleging that EWM has infringed the '730
and '374 Patents "by marketing or causing to have their products and services marked to
consumers, within this [District of New Jersey] judicial district, using systems and methods that
fall under the scope of the claims of the '730 and the '374 Patents." (Case 1: 12-cv-05849-RMB-
KMW, D.l. 1, t ~ 10.).
7. Umbanet has filed other lawsuits against other defendants asse1ting the same
'730 and '374 Patents, and on information and belief, intends to file many more lawsuits on these ·
same patents, including against Constant Contact's customers.
8: In its complaint against EWM, Umbanet attached an exhibit that purports to
"set(] forth an example of an infringing email and associated source code that falls within the
scope ofthe '730 and '374 Patents." (Case 1:12-cv-05849-RMB-KMW, D.I. 1, at ,I 11.) Said
exhibit reproduces an email newsletter that counsel for Umbanct received from EWM, as well as
associated source code. On its face, said exhibit indicates that the email newsletter was created
using Constant Contact's commercial email services.
9. EWM has sought indemnity and defense from Constant Contact in
connection with Umbanet's lawsuit against EWM .
10. The Court has subject matter jurisdiction over this action under 28 U.S.C.
§§ 2201, 1331 and 1338(a) because this action arises under the patent laws, and seeks relief
under the Federal Declaratory Judgment Act.
11. Venue is proper in this district pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1391 (b) and (c)
because Umbanet is a Delaware corporation.
12. Based upon information and belief, Umbanct's purpose is to assert the '730
and '374 Patents against Constant Contact' s customers in an eiTort to obtain licensing royalties
from the use of Constant Contact's commercial email services.
13. This Declaratory Judgment action presents an actual case or controversy
because the acts of Umbanet have created in Constant Contact a reasonable apprehension that, as
a result of Constant Contact's continuing manufacture, use, and sale of its Email Marketing
product and other commercial email services, Constant Contact and its customers will be sued
for infringement of the '730 and '374 Patents. In addition, Constant Contact fears that it will
suffer commercial injury if Umbanet continues to sue, and threaten to sue, Constant Contact's
customers, as those customers will consequently seek indemnity and defense from Constant
Contact. Furthermore, those customers will be dissuaded from purchasing and using Constant
Contact's Email Marketing product and other commercial email services.
(Declaratory Judgment of Patent Invalidity of the '730 Patent- 35 U.S.C. §§ 101 et seq.)
14. Plaintiff repeats the allegations in the preceding paragraphs as if fully set
15. The '730 Patent is invalid for failure to comply with the requirements of
Title 3 5 of the United States Code, including, without limitation, one or more of §§ I 01 , 102,
103, and 112. On information and belief, the claims are anticipated and/or obvious in light of
prior art references such as the MOS Multimedia E-Mail System by M. Ouhyoung, et al.,
published in 1994, which discloses sending and receiving emails containing non-text content
over the Internet, in the manner claimed by the '730 Patent. On information and belief: one or
more limitations of the '730 Patent claims fails to satisfy the requirements of 35 U.S.C. § 112,
including, without limitation, one or more of the following limitations are indefinite, lack written
description, and/or are not adequately enabled by the specification: "encoding means for
automatically encoding [said] representation[ s] created with said authoring components into an
[Internet-compatible] email message" (claims 1, 12, 24, 25); "decoding means for automatically
decoding said representation encoded [with] [by] said encoding means" (claims 1, 12, 24, 25);
"linking the component with the document encoding component" (claim
16. The '730 Patent is invalid because, among other things, there is prior art,
not considered by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in issuing the patent, that anticipates the
17. Plaintiff seeks and is entitled to a declaratory judgment that the '730 Patent
(Declaratory Judgment of Non-Infringement of the '730 Patent)
18. Plaintiff repeats the allegations in the preceding paragraphs as if fully set
f01th in this paragraph.
19. Plaintiff seeks and is entitled to a declaratory judgment that the use of
Plaintiffs Email Marketing product by Plaintiff's customers to send emails does not constitute
an infringement of any valid claim of the '730 Patent.
(Declaratory Judgment of Patent Invalidity of the '374 Patent- 35 U.S.C. §§ 101 et seq.)
20. Plaintiff repeats the allegations in the preceding paragraphs as if fully set
21. The '374 Patent is invalid for failw·e to comply with the requirements of
Title 35 of the United States Code, including, without limitation, one or more of §§ 101 , 102,
103, and 112.
22. The '374 Patent is invalid because, among other things, there is prior art, not
considered by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in issuing the patent, that anticipates the
claims. On information and belief, the claims are anticipated and/or obvious in light of prior art
references such as Lotus Notes Release 4.5: A Developer's Handbook by IBM, published in
1996, which discloses hiding certain information from viewers. On information and belief, one
or more limitations of the '374 Patent claims fail s to satisfy the requirements of35 U.S.C. § 112,
automatically encoding representations created with said authoring/reading components into an
Internet-compatible email message" (claim 11); "decoding means for automatically decoding
said representation encoded by said encoding means" (claim 11 ).
23. Plaintiff seeks and is entitled to a declaratory judgment that the '374 Patent
(Declaratory Judgment of Non-Infringement of the '374 Patent)
24. Plaintiff repeats the allegations in the preceding paragraphs as if fully set
25. Plaintifi seeks and is entitled to a declaratory judgment that the use of
Plaintiff's Email Marketing product by Plaintiff's customers to send emails does not constitute
an infringement of any valid claim of the '374 Patent.
WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully requests that this Court enter judgment in its
favor and against Defendant, granting the following relief:
A. For judgment that the '730 Patent, and each of the claims therein, are
B. For judgment that customers of Plaintiff's Email Marketing product and
other commercial email services, including Englewood Wine Merchants sued in the U.S. District
Cowt for the District of New Jersey, do not infringe any valid claim ofthe '730 Patent;
C. For a preliminary and pennancnt injunction precluding Defendant, its
officers, directors, employees, agents, and all other persons acting in concert or participation
with them from suing for infringement or otherwise asserting infringement of the '730 Patent
against customers of Plaintiffs Email Marketing product or other commercial email services.
D. For judgment that the '374 Patent, and each of the claims therein, are
E. For judgment that customers of PlaintitT' s Email Marketing product and
Court for the District of New Jersey, do not infringe any valid claim ofthe '374 Patent;
F. For a preliminary and permanent injunction precluding Defendant, its
with them, from suing for infringement or otherwise asserting infringement of the '374 Patent
G. For costs and reasonable attomcys' tees incurred in connection with this
Plaintiff demands a jury trial as to all issues that arc triable by a jury in this action.
LATHAM & w A TKJNS LLP
555 Eleventh Street, N. W.
Menlo Park, CA 94025-1 008
. a B. Blumenfeld (#1014)
au) Saindon (#511 0)
j blumenfeld@mnat.com
Documents Similar To Constant Contact v. Umbanet