Implausible Infringement Allegations Subject to Dismissal at Pleading Stage​

The magistrate judge recommended granting defendants' motion to dismiss two of plaintiff's patent infringement claims for failure to state a claim. "Defendants argue that the no plausible construction of the claim term 'TV Channel' results in a uniform resource locator (‘URL’) meeting the TV Channel limitation as alleged. The Court agrees. . . . Having reviewed the parties’ arguments, the specification, and the portions of the prosecution history cited in the briefing, [plaintiff] has no plausible basis for alleging that the plain and ordinary meaning of ‘TV Channel’ (or ‘TV Channel’ properly construed) covers URLs, i.e., a unique address for a web page that makes content addressable on the Internet. The Supreme Court has opined that 'determining whether a complaint states a plausible claim is context-specific, requiring the reviewing court to draw on its experience and common sense.'. . . [T]his case falls squarely into the narrow slice of cases where based on the claims, specification, its experience, and common sense, the Court can readily conclude that plaintiff’s infringement allegations are implausible on their face."

Bartonfalls LLC v. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., 2-16-cv-01130 (TXED March 15, 2017, Order) (Payne, MJ)