SAP Becomes First to Test New Patent Rules in the America Invents Act, Gets Window of Hope in $345M Versata Case

On Tuesday, June 11, Finnegan client SAP “claimed a victory” in “the very first case to be tried under the new rules for business method patents, which are part of the America Invents Act.” The case concerned a patent covering dynamic pricing technology which the USPTO’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) found unpatentable. Finnegan partner Erika Arner explained the PTAB found the ideas in the patent to be abstract and lacking “enough significant meaningful limitations to transform these abstract ideas into patent-eligible applications.”

TechCrunch reported that “SAP literally filed its appeal the day the Act was approved in September 2012, and the success of striking down the business method patent in this particular case could set a precedent for how other companies opposing business method patents may proceed.” Finnegan represented SAP in this matter.