Two-Way Media Ltd. v. Comcast Cable Communications, LLC

Two-Way’s patents, entitled “Multicasting Method and Apparatus,” generally relate to a system for streaming audio/visual data over a communications system like the internet. The patents explain that internet systems typically operate on a point-to-point, unicast, basis. In unicast systems, a message is converted into a series of addressed packets which are routed from a source node to a destination node. Unicast systems cannot broadcast a message from a source node to all the other recipients in a network, as this type of operation could easily overload the network. IP Multicasting provides a way to transmit one packet of information to multiple recipients; packets destined for several recipients are encapsulated in a unicast packet and forwarded from a source to a point in a network where the packets are replicated and forwarded on to all desired recipients. The patents explain that this technology had previously been used to provide internet-based audio/visual conferencing servicing and radio-like broadcasts and describe the invention as an improved scalable architecture for delivering real-time information. The Federal Circuit affirmed a holding that certain claims are directed to patent-ineligible subject matter under 35 U.S.C. 101. The claims are directed to abstract ideas and contain no additional elements that transform them into an application of the abstract ideas. View "Two-Way Media Ltd. v. Comcast Cable Communications, LLC" on Justia Law