Perry Street Successfully Defends Itself From Patent Infringement Accusation

A federal judge has sided with Perry Street Software in its declaratory judgement action against Jedi Technologies. The owner of SCRUFF and Jack’d was accused of a patent infringement, regarding the use of personal information to determine compatibility.

Jedi Technologies claimed it held a patent dating back to 2000, but in actual fact it was only issued three years ago.

Judge Colleen McMahon concluded the patent failed to cover anything revolutionary in regards to the online dating industry. She even cited ‘The American’, a Henry James novel published in 1877, to further the point that asking and answering questions to find a partner is not a new concept.

Perry Street Software CEO Eric Silverberg told Law360: “We know what bullying looks like, and more than one year ago when we were threatened with a lawsuit over a flimsy patent, we responded with force.” 

“[This ruling] a victory today on behalf of the LGBTQ+ community and small businesses everywhere…Perry Street Software will spare no expense fighting any entity or troll that would seek to bully us or the LGBTQ+ community.”

Despite not officially filing a lawsuit against Perry Street Software, Jedi Technologies issued a letter of warning in May 2020.

Last year, Perry Street Software tried to get the lawsuit moved into arbitration after discovering Brian Haan, the legal counsel for Jedi Technologies, had downloaded one of its subsidiaries and accepted terms that required all legal disputes to be resolved outside the courts.

However, Judge McMahon ruled that Haan needed to download the app in order to be suitably prepared for the case.

Jedi Technologies has previously accused Spark Networks and Ashley Madison of infringing its patent, but both lawsuits were eventually dropped.

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