eBay Statement on Supreme Court Oral Argument and MercExchange Patent Reexamination
Published March 30th, 2006
Press release
eBay is pleased with yesterday’s oral argument and appreciated the opportunity to address the Supreme Court in this important case. eBay argued that trial judges ought to have the discretion — expressly granted by Congress — to award money damages to patent owners, instead of injunctions, if the facts of a particular case warrant it. The trial judge correctly found in this case that money was sufficient and denied an injunction. With yesterday’s Supreme Court argument, eBay has fully presented its views to the Court and looks forward to receiving the Court’s ruling.
In a related development, eBay learned on Monday, March 27, that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office confirmed its earlier decision that MercExchange’s U.S. Patent No. 5,845,265 is obvious and should never have issued as a patent. This ruling is significant since it responds to — and dismisses — the arguments MercExchange raised in its 100-page response to the Patent Office’s previous rejection of all of MercExchange’s claims. While MercExchange will be permitted to respond to the Patent Office’s new ruling, it is unclear what, if any, additional arguments MercExchange could raise that would alter the Patent Office’s current view.
“eBay commends the Patent Office for its willingness to reexamine this patent and is impressed with the thorough analysis contained in this second office action,” said Jay Monahan, eBay’s Deputy General Counsel of Intellectual Property.
The ‘265 patent is the subject of the dispute between eBay and MercExchange, and the recent ruling by the Patent Office was noted a number of times by the Supreme Court yesterday.
About eBay Inc.
Founded in 1995, eBay pioneers communities built on commerce, sustained by trust, and inspired by opportunity. eBay enables ecommerce on a local, national and international basis with an array of websites — including the eBay Marketplace, PayPal, Skype, Kijiji, Rent.com and Shopping.com — that bring together millions of buyers and sellers every day.
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