CompanyCam moved to dismiss plaintiff's complaint because
the asserted '872 patent, titled "Device and Method for
Embedding and Retrieving Information in Digital Images," was
directed to ineligible subject matter. The U.S. District Court for
the District of Delaware agreed and stated during the hearing that
it would grant the motion. Plaintiff quickly dismissed the case
after the hearing before the decision was even docketed.
Following the court's decision on the motion to dismiss,
CompanyCam sought attorneys' fees and argued that the case was
exceptional for three reasons: 1) the '872 patent was clearly
not eligible for patent protection under § 101; 2) the
plaintiff engaged in vexatious litigation related to both the
asserted patent and its other patents; and 3) plaintiff's
infringement allegations were deficient. The court addressed these
three issues in turn.
