Opinion ID: 2808721
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Alexsam’s Patents

Text: United States Patent Nos. 6,000,608 (“the ’608 patent”) and 6,189,787 (“the ’787 patent”) (collectively, “the patents-in-suit”) are titled “Multifunction Card System” and “Multifunctional Card System,” respectively, and name Robert Dorf as the inventor. The two patents share a common specification, and have an effective filing date of July 10, 1997. They disclose “a multifunction card system which provides a multifunction card capable of serving” as a system for activating various types of prepaid cards, such as a phone card, debit card, or loyalty card, at a point-of-sale (“POS”) device, such as a cash register. ’608 patent, Abstract. ALEXSAM, INC. v. THE GAP, INC. 3 Figure 1, found in both patents, illustrates the multifunction card system 108 which “comprises a plurality of cards 101, a sponsor bank processor 102, and a processing hub 103, which serves as the nerve center of the system 108.” Id. col. 4 ll. 20–23; ’787 patent col. 4 ll. 26–29. According to the patents, “[i]n order to achieve the desired functionality, the system 108 uses existing banking networks in a unique and novel way to gain access to virtually all existing retail [POS] devices 105.” ’608 patent col. 4 ll. 25–28; ’787 patent col. 4 ll. 31–35. A POS device can include “stand-alone POS terminals, cash registers with POS interfacing, computers with POS interfacing, and other similar devices which can be used to access the banking system.” ’608 patent col. 4 ll. 29–32; ’787 patent col. 4 ll. 35–38. As used in the patents, the claimed POS device “includes all such devices, whether data entry is effected by swiping a card through the device or by manual entry.” ’608 patent col. 4 ll. 32–35; ’787 patent col. 4 ll. 39–41. ’608 patent fig.1; ’787 patent fig.1. 4 ALEXSAM, INC. v. THE GAP, INC. Claim 34 of the ’608 patent is representative: 34. A system comprising: a. at least one electronic gift certificate card having an electronic gift certificate card unique identification number encoded on it, said electronic gift certificate card unique identification number comprising a bank identification number [“BIN”] approved by the American Banking Association for use in a banking network; b. a transaction processor receiving electronic gift card activation data from an unmodified existing standard retail point-of-sale device, said electronic gift certificate card activation data including said unique identification number and an electronic gift certificate card activation amount; c. a processing hub receiving directly or indirectly said activation data from said transaction processor; and d. said processing hub activating an account cor- responding to the electronic gift certificate card unique identification number with a balance cor- responding to the electronic gift certificate activation amount. ’608 patent col. 16 ll. 15–33 (emphases added). Claim 1 of the ’787 patent is representative:
a. at least one electronic gift certificate card having a unique identification number encoded on it, said identification number comprising a bank identification number approved by the American Banking Association for use in a banking network, said identification number corresponding to said multifunction card system; ALEXSAM, INC. v. THE GAP, INC. 5 b. a bank processing hub computer under bank hub software control and in communication over a banking network with a pre-existing standard re- tail point-of-sale device, said bank processing hub computer receiving electronic gift certificate card activation data when said electronic gift certificate card is swiped through said point-of-sale device, said electronic gift certificate card activation data comprising said unique identification num- ber of said electronic gift certificate card and an electronic gift certificate activation amount; and c. a gift certificate card computer under gift certificate card software control and in communication with said bank processing hub for activating a gift certificate card account in a gift certificate card database corresponding to said electronic gift certificate card, said gift certificate card account comprising balance data representative of an electronic gift certificate activation amount. ’787 patent col. 11 l. 47–col. 12 l. 4 (emphasis added). Though similar, the patents-in-suit differ from each other in important ways. The ’787 patent provides for a “pre-existing standard retail point-of-sale device,” id. col. 11 ll. 57–58, which is a “terminal for making purchases at a retail location of the type in use as of July 10, 1997.” J.A. 2367. The ’608 patent discloses that this device is “unmodified,” ’608 patent col. 11 l. 49, which the district court construed to mean a terminal that “has not been reprogrammed, customized, or otherwise altered with respect to its software or hardware for use in the card system.” J.A. 2322. The claims of the ’608 patent refer to a “processing hub,” which the court construed as a “computer which provides front-end point-of-sale device management and message processing for card authorizations or activations.” J.A. 2366. By contrast, the ’787 patent claims recite a “bank processing hub computer,” which is 6 ALEXSAM, INC. v. THE GAP, INC. a “computer, other than a processing hub, that is maintained by a bank, that facilitates the card transaction and that is remote from the pre-existing standard retail pointof-sale device.” J.A. 2367.