EDMOND, OK, September 30, 2003 - SSI Technologies, a division of REG Oklahoma Acquisition LLC (SSI), a leading manufacturer of plastic cards, announced today its decision to aggressively enforce its portfolio of key patents related to plastic cards. To this end, SSI Technologies has transferred ownership of its patents to Advanced Card Technologies LLC (ACT) with a mandate to actively license and enforce the patents (ACT Patents). ACT is a joint venture between SSI, General Patent Corporation (GPC), a premiere contingency patent licensing and enforcement firm, and IP Holdings LLC (IP Holdings), an intellectual property incubator focused on patent commercialization.
The ACT Patents generally relate to card packages in which a card is connected to and selectively detachable from a carrier. Card packages having this structure are widely used for gift, loyalty and prepaid phone cards.
“SSI has licensed and enforced its patents in the past,” said Ron Goade, SSI’s founder and the inventor of the patented technology. “But this was on a relatively small scale. Now that our technology has been widely adopted by the plastic card industry, we decided that it is best to turn it over to professionals to license and enforce the patents on a large scale. We are confident that ACT, under the management of General Patent Corporation, will successfully license and enforce our patents to the industry,” Mr. Goade concluded.
“We intend to offer non-exclusive licenses on very attractive terms,” said Neil Cohen, GPC’s Assistant General Counsel, who is spearheading ACT’s licensing and enforcement campaign. “At the same time, if necessary, the patent rights of Advanced Card Technologies will be vigorously enforced.” There currently are five licensees under the ACT Patents.
About Advanced Card Technologies LLC
Advanced Card Technologies LLC (ACT), located in Suffern, New York, is a joint venture between SSI Technologies, General Patent Corporation, and IP Holdings LLC. ACT was formed for the purpose of licensing and enforcing U.S. Patents Nos. 5,720,158 and 5,921,584. For further information contact Advanced Card Technologies LLC, c/o General Patent Corporation, Montebello Park, 75 Montebello Road, Suffern, NY 10901; telephone: (845) 368-4000; or e-mail: info @ generalpatent.com.
About SSI Technologies
Headquartered in Edmond, OK, SSI was established in 1969 by Ron Goade, a pioneer in the plastic card industry. SSI is widely recognized as the leading technology based plastic card manufacturer in the world. For further information about SSI, contact Ron Goade at SSI Technologies, 1027 Waterwood Parkway, Edmond, OK 73034; telephone: (405) 359-6000; or e-mail: rgoade @ ssicards.com.