Digimedia

On March 1, 2011, Hagens Berman filed a patent lawsuit on behalf of Mission Abstract Data, in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware. The lawsuit alleges that the corporate owners of more than 900 radio stations are infringing on two of Mission Abstract Data’s patents by using hard-drive based computer systems in the operation of their music radio stations. The patents in question are Patent No. 5,629,867 and Patent No. 5,809,246.

Before the invention claimed in the asserted Mission Abstract Data patents, a radio station’s music library was generally stored on a collection of CDs requiring a greater expenditure labor, money and space than the hard-drive based systems claimed in the asserted ‘867 and ‘246 patents. Today, radio stations have nearly all transitioned to Mission Abstract Data’s technology, resulting in a faster and less labor-intensive broadcast.

Hagens Berman’s lawsuit alleges that a number of corporate owners, including CBS Radio, Cox Radio and Townsquare Media, are infringing the patents by using digital systems to store, select, retrieve, and broadcast music on their stations.

The lawsuit requests a both an injunction and an award of damages adequate to compensate for the infringement.