In
cxLoyalty, Inc. v. Maritz Holdings Inc., Appeals
2020-1307, -1309 (Fed. Cir. Feb. 8, 2021), the Federal Circuit
affirmed a PTAB final written decision in a CBM proceeding
canceling Maritz s original claims related to a GUI for a
customer loyalty program, as ineligible for patenting under 35
U.S.C. § 101. The PTAB had granted Maritz s request
to substitute amended claims, but the court reversed, concluding
those claims also are ineligible under section 101.
Customer loyalty programs were known before the invention of the
patent (the 087 patent). In those programs, a customer
may be provided with a limited listing of rewards from
selected redemption vendors in the form of merchandise,
Federal Circuit Invalidates Patent Directed To Customer Loyalty And Rewards System - Intellectual Property
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Federal Circuit Invalidates Patent Directed to Customer Loyalty and Rewards System | Holland & Knight LLP
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Friday, February 26, 2021
In
cxLoyalty, Inc. v. Maritz Holdings Inc., Nos. 2020-1307, 1309 (February 8, 2021), the Federal Circuit found both original and substitute claims in a covered business method review ineligible for patent protection under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
cxLoyalty filed a petition for covered business method review, challenging claims 1–15 of U.S. Patent No. 7,134,087, owned by Maritz. The ’087 patent claimed a system and method that automates the process of redeeming credit card loyalty points for rewards. Instead of requiring human participation, as in traditional systems, the ’087’s system uses computer-based interfaces to streamline the process.
The Board found all challenged claims were patent ineligible because they related to an abstract idea under 35 U.S.C. § 101. But the Board found no such issue with Maritz’s substitute claims, 16–23, deeming them patent-eligible. cxLoyalty appealed the Board’s ruling on the substitute claims; Mar