Ricoh and Xerox Combat Patent Troll Licensing Demands

On May 23, Ricoh Americas and Xerox asked the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) for a review of U.S. Patent No. 7,786,426 (“the ‘426 patent”). The ‘426 patent has become the core item in the patent licensing demands of various affiliates of MPHJ Technology Investments. Starting late last year, MPHJ has been targeting users of nearly all multifunction printers (MFPs), including the products of Ricoh and Xerox.

In the review petition, Ricoh and Xerox are asking USPTO to rule that the claims of the ‘426 patent are invalid.

In a joint statement the companies said, “Ricoh and Xerox believe that the ‘426 patent is invalid, the infringement claims are without merit and the licensing demands of MPHJ are unsupportable. Today’s filing demonstrates both Ricoh and Xerox’s strong commitment to their customers and authorized dealer networks. If successful, our action will both nullify the ‘426 patent and help disable MPHJ’s licensing campaign against our customers. We are confident this is the right action to take to support our customers.”

Ricoh and Xerox will continually focus on MPHJ’s licensing efforts. If there is any development of the USPTO review, the companies will update their customers and authorized dealer networks.

The lawsuits filed by MPHJ’s affiliates focus on small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). MPHJ claims that use of MFPs to send files to e-mail or network software, infringes MPHJ’s ‘426 patent and is demanding a license fee for such use. The persistence of this firm has led industry analysts to label it a troll patent licensing group. The word troll implies dragging a baited hook through the water in hopes of catching a fish. Thus, dragging a letter through an industry that threatens a patent infringement lawsuit, in hopes of snagging a prospective licensee, is called patent trolling.