On September 26, 2024, District Judge Gregory H. Woods (S.D.N.Y.) granted Defendant Epic Games, Inc. (“Epic Games”)’s Motion to Dismiss for failure to state a claim because Plaintiff AK Meeting IP, LLC (“AK”)’s allegations were either conclusory or merely mimicked the language of the asserted patent. Slip Op. at 1.
AK owns U.S. patent No. 8,627,211 (“the ’211 patent”) which is directed to a “cursor” and “pointer” that are simultaneously displayed on a screen. The specification explains that the “cursor” is displayed on the user’s screen and its movement is controlled by user input. When the “cursor” is moved, a “cursor message” is sent to a server which elicits a “pointer message.” The “pointer” is also displayed on the user’s screen. However, the pointer may only move after the “pointer message” is received by the user’s computer. When the “pointer” moves on the screen, it generally trails the “cursor’s” movement.
In its Complaint, AK presented a series of annotated screenshots of Fortnite, the famously popular online video game developed by Epic Games. Those screenshots showed two Fortnite characters standing next to each other with one of them labeled “cursor” and the other labeled “pointer.” The character labeled “cursor” was alleged to be manipulated by a pointing device such as a mouse or keyboard, while the character labeled “pointer” was alleged to trail the first character.
The Court found that the Complaint only provided a screenshot of two characters labeled “cursor” and “pointer” and a conclusory statement that the Fortnite characters fell within the scope of the claimed language in the ’211 Patent. Id. at 8. The Court held that this constitutes nothing more than reciting claim elements and statements that the accused product had those elements. Id. As such, the pleading does not meet the Iqbal/Twombly standard for a plausible claim of patent infringement and the Court granted Epic Games’ Motion to Dismiss. Id. at 12.
The case is AK Meeting IP, LLC v. Epic Games, Inc., No. 1:23-cv-8214-GHW (S.D.N.Y Sept. 26, 2024).
