District Court Judge Sends Patent Suit to Mediation

RADIO ONLINE | , , | :am CT

In April, a patent licensing company, Aldav LLC, filed suit against Clear Channel, CBS Radio and several other broadcasters for allegedly infringing on a patent that allows radio outlets to replace local content with content for those listening over the Internet. On Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Leonard Davis has sent Aldav and lawyers representing the broadcast groups into mediation in hopes to avoid a complicated and highly-technical trial.

Acacia, which specializes in buying patents, then going after companies for cash, filed the claim in a U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas against Clear Channel, CBS Radio, Cumulus Media, Citadel Broadcasting, Entercom, Saga Communications, Cox Radio, Univision, GAP Broadcasting, GAP Broadcasting II, Radio One, and the Aloha Station Trust.

According to a previous report by Law360, the patent covers "the replacement of the portion of the content in a radio station broadcast that is distributed over the Internet that is local in nature or otherwise unsuitable for the Internet audience with content that is relevant to the broader audience."

The patent was issued to David D. Minter and Albert S. Baldocchi in June, 2003, and Aldav is the patent's exclusive licensee, according to the suit. Aldav is seeking a judgment from the court that the radio groups have infringed on the patent and an accounting of the damages.