AOL Internet Phone Service VoIP services logo The Washington Business Journal's Jeff Clabaugh reports that AOL is being sued for $200 million by a New York company that claims AOL's Internet telephony (VoIP) services violate a patent it holds.

Judah Klausner's Klausner Technologies claims that AOL is "violating Klausner's intellectual property rights by offering services in which subscribers receive visual notification of new voice messages, including caller identifying information, and can selectively retrieve voice messages using their displays."

The voice services that Klausner claims violate his patent include AOL Voicemail, AOL Call Alert, AOL by Phone and AOL VOIP Internet Phone Service -- essentially the entire AOL VoIP portfolio.

Frankly, from the perspective of someone who isn't a patent lawyer, this looks like a nuisance lawsuit that is just a cash grab.

Klausner Technologies appears to be a company set up for the specific purpose of bringing lawsuits.

Public Whois data shows that the domain name klausnertechnologies.com was registered 10 days ago:

   Organization:
      Joe Covey
      Joe Covey
      200 E 90 Street Apt 21B
      New York, NY 10128
      US
      Phone: 917 359 0263
      Email: coveyjoe@aol.com

   Registrar Name....: Register.com
   Registrar Whois...: whois.register.com
   Registrar Homepage: http://www.register.com

   Domain Name: KLAUSNERTECHNOLOGIES.COM

      Created on..............: Sun, Jun 05, 2005
      Expires on..............: Mon, Jun 05, 2006
      Record last updated on..: Sun, Jun 05, 2005

   Administrative Contact:
      Joe Covey
      Joe Covey
      200 E 90 Street Apt 21B
      New York, NY 10128
      US
      Phone: 917 359 0263
      Email: coveyjoe@aol.com

   Technical Contact, Zone Contact:
      Register.Com
      Domain Registrar
      575 8th Avenue - 11th Floor
      New York, NY 10018
      US
      Phone: 902-749-2701
      Fax..: 902-749-5429
      Email: domain-registrar@register.com

   Domain servers in listed order:

   DNS23.REGISTER.COM                                216.21.234.82     
   DNS24.REGISTER.COM                                216.21.226.82

The Klausner Technologies site is a Register.com domain parking page as you can see from this screen capture:



I don't know about you, but I find that very odd for a company -- especially a technology company -- that has been around since 1994, according to the NYS Department of State (DOS), Division of Corporations, State Records, and Uniform Commercial Code.

Here is the Klausner Technologies, Inc. business Entity Information record.

NYS Department of State Division of Corporations

Entity Information

Selected Entity Name: KLAUSNER TECHNOLOGIES, INC.

Selected Entity Status Information
Current Entity Name: KLAUSNER TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
Initial DOS Filing Date: MAY 18, 1994
County: SUFFOLK
Jurisdiction: NEW YORK
Entity Type: DOMESTIC BUSINESS CORPORATION
Current Entity Status: ACTIVE

Selected Entity Address Information
DOS Process (Address to which DOS will mail process if accepted on behalf of the entity)
% KANE KESSLER, P.C., ATTENTION: BARRY J. BENDES, ESQ.
1350 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS
26TH FLOOR
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, 10019
Registered Agent
NONE

NOTE: New York State does not issue organizational identification numbers.


I get the sense that Klausner is going after AOL to fund a $200 million war chest, with which it will go after the big telecom companies. After all, they have really deep pockets.

Voice over Internet Protocol is here to stay until some better technology supersedes it, but now that a fledgling industry is developing around the technology, I suppose it's inevitable that we will see lawsuits like this, but I'm not a fan of

If it's truly a legitimate infringement, then Klausner is justified, but I can't see how the patent in question applies in this case, and how Klausner can claim it applies specifically to AOL's "voice messages via the Internet" as Klausner claims in its press release.

Decide for yourself. Read Klausner's patent # 5,572,576 - Telephone answering device linking displayed data with recorded audio message. You can see Jonah Klausner's other patents as well.

I've appended the Klausner Technologies press release below.


June 15, 2005 11:37 AM US Eastern Timezone

Klausner Technologies, Inc. Sues AOL for Patent Infringement; Damages and Royalties on AOL Voicemail, Call Alert and VOIP Estimated at $200 Million

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 15, 2005--Klausner Technologies, Inc., founded by Judah Klausner, the inventor of the PDA and standard electronic organizer (U.S. Patent 4,117,542), announced today that it has filed suit against Time Warner subsidiary AOL for patent infringement, with patent damages and royalties estimated at $200 million.

The lawsuit asserts that AOL's voice services platform, which include AOL Voicemail, AOL Call Alert, AOL by Phone and AOL VOIP Internet Phone Service infringe Klausner Technologies U.S. Patent. 5,572,576.

Klausner Technologies, Inc. owns over 20 patents worldwide covering voice services which allow for remote retrieval of selected voice messages via the Internet or wireless networks from a visual display.

AOL is charged with violating Klausner's intellectual property rights by offering services in which subscribers receive visual notification of new voice messages, including caller identifying information, and can selectively retrieve voice messages using their displays.

The suit has been filed by the California law firm of Dovel & Luner in a federal court in Virginia, AOL's home base. "Because of the fast-paced docket in the Eastern District of Virginia, we expect a quick resolution of the matter and the prompt issuance of an injunction that will stop AOL from using this patented technology," said Greg Dovel of Dovel & Luner, counsel for Klausner Technologies.

About Klausner Technologies, Inc.

Klausner Technologies Inc. owns and licenses patents covering the selective retrieval of voice messages from a display via the Internet, cellular or other communication networks.

Contacts
Klausner Technologies, Inc.
Media:
Judith Sylk Siegel, 212-751-9266
jsylksiegel@klausnertechnologies.com