M·CAM, Inc. releases Patently Obvious® on Progressive’s U.S. Patent No. 7,124,088

Date:  Mon, 2011-05-16

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – May 16, 2011 – M·CAM, Inc. released its Patently Obvious® report today on the patent holdings of Progressive Corporation listed in Progressive Casualty Insurance Company v. Allstate Insurance Company et. al.

On January 12, 2011, Progressive Casualty Insurance Company filed a patent infringement lawsuit against a group of its competitors. The suit claims that Allstate, Liberty Mutual and Safeco have all infringed on Progressive’s U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,124,088 (hereafter ”˜088) and 6,064,970. The patents in question describe and protect an online insurance policy system and vehicle monitoring system. Two weeks after the lawsuit was filed using patent ”˜088, a continuation of this patent 7,877,269 (US ”˜269) was granted to Progressive, containing largely similar claims.

Using the M·CAM DOORS™ analytic platform, an intellectual property analysis of Progressive’s ”˜088 patent was conducted in order to understand its strength and defensibility in the face of precedent commercial products, prior art, and concurrent innovation. The innovation space surrounding the ”˜088 patent and its patent family members was examined to determine which patent(s) may provide alternatives to or alter the value of Progressive’s properties.

The question stands: are Progressive’s infringement claims valid, or will potential weaknesses in its asserted patents backfire and injure Progressive’s portfolio?

M·CAM’s Patently Obvious® is a weekly report providing visibility into potentially unconsidered alternatives, including art in the public domain, to patent holdings across a variety of technology areas.

M·CAM, Inc. is a global, full-service intellectual property and rights (IP&R) and intangible asset financial services firm. We provide the technical and financial systems that allow public and private markets to use IP&R and IA for regulated transactions in banking, securities, insurance, and public innovation investment and technology procurement. From our pioneering work in creating the world’s first standards-based innovation collateralization financial products for banking and securities to our work in grassroots innovator enablement and patent quality assurance programs, M·CAM provides the mechanism to balance the interests of public and commercial sectors to support and build thriving economies.

The M·CAM Patently Obvious® report on the Progressive patent can be found HERE.