Active People Prosecuted for Infringing eTAGZ IP

On Wednesday, November 28, 2012, eTAGZ (plaintiff) recorded a complaint against Active People (defendant) for patent infringement in the U.S. District Court of Utah (case no. 2:12-cv-01090). 

eTAGZ is involved in digital shopping marketing initiatives for manufacturers, retailers and content providers to drive merchandise sales and capture new consumers. Active People is in the business of manufacturing games and toy products under brand names including its own “Active People” brand. 

The patents involved in the suit are:

Patent Number Current Assignee[1]	Issued Date	Expiration Date[2]	Title
US6298332 eTAGZ	Oct  02, 2001	May 06, 2019	CD-ROM product label apparatus and method
US7503502 eTAGZ	Mar 17, 2009	May 06, 2019	Computer readable hang tag and product
US7703686 eTAGZ	Apr 27, 2010	May 06, 2019	Consumer-computer-readable product label apparatus and method
US8249919 eTAGZ	Aug 21, 2012	May 06, 2019	Computer-readable medium product label apparatus and method

Note: Table information sourced from Maxval Assignment Database.

The eTAGZ patents involve product marketing and branding through the use of a digital labeling system including a CD, DVD, CD-ROM, memory card, USB flash drive or other digital communication device. Use of digital labeling system creates a unique marketing opportunities for vendors and manufacturers. Information about the manufacturer such as branding, product lines, multimedia presentations and interactivity with purchasers are some of the benefits that can be obtained by employing a digital labeling system.  It is used as a means of differentiating products in marketplace. According to the complaint, the toys Kiwido and Astrojax (the “infringing products”) allegedly infringe the above patents by the way they are marketed. Kiwido (see Fig. 1) is a game and a swinging toy that combines dynamic motion, aesthetics and dancing elements. Astrojax (see Fig. 2) is a game about action, rhythm and personal style. Three balls with special metal weights inside are connected with a string and can rotate rapidly in response to torques applied by the string. They are sold through various retail stores including the defendant’s website www.activepeople.com. 

                                     

                                               

               Fig.1: Kiwido                         Fig.2: Astrojax

eTAGZ has recently filed patent infringement suit against the following companies:

Company	Case Number	Date Filed	Status
Foiles Migrators	2:12-cv-01067	11/19/2012	Pending
Do It Corporation	2:12-cv-00944	10/09/2012	Pending

If you are interested in knowing more about the cases filed by eTAGZ, please contact us.

For more details, visit MaxVal-IP and subscribe to our Litigation Alerts.

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[1]MaxVal offers Patent Assignment Alert service where subscribers receive email alerts when assignments relating to target applications, patents or entities of interest are recorded.

[2]Expected expiration date. Patent Term Estimator is a free web-based tool that automatically calculates patent terms and expiration dates for U.S. utility patents.