July 2026 was an active month for retail patent litigation with continued serial filings against national chains. Frequent filers included Near Field Electronics, Fall Line Patents, and GoTV Networks. For retailers, the month is a reminder that exposure to NPE litigation is not limited to large national chains, small dealers and independent operators are increasingly being swept into mass-filing campaigns, often over patents covering backend technology or product features they neither designed nor control.
As usual, I prepared the report in partnership with and using Docket Navigator and its powerful database. Docket Navigator is a valuable resource, and the place to go if you want to keep track of new patent litigation filings or want to know what is happening in particular cases, how your judge has historically handled a particular type of motion, or a particular plaintiff’s litigation history. Finally, please let me know if you have thoughts about the report or changes you would like to see. I am preparing it as a service for retailers and their supply chain who may want an overview of the patent litigation landscape. So, I am very open to your suggestions for improving the report.
Fall Line Patents, LLC v. Abercrombie & Fitch Co. et al. (multiple cases) (E.D. Tex.).
Judge: District Judge Robert W. Schroeder, III
Claims: Infringement
Defendants:
- Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
- Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc. d/b/a Hollister Co.
- Dick’s Sporting Goods, Inc.
- Foot Locker, Inc.
- Foot Locker Retail, Inc.
- IKEA North America Services, LLC
- IKEA Systems BV
- IKEA US Retail LLC
- Lululemon USA Inc.
- Macy’s, Inc. d/b/a Macy’s
- Macy’s Retail Holdings, LLC
- QT South, LLC
- QuikTrip Corporation d/b/a QuikTrip
- Sephora USA, Inc.
- Old Navy, LLC
- The Gap, Inc.
- Ulta Beauty, Inc.
- Ulta Inc.
- Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc.
Plaintiff: Fall Line Patents, LLC
Pls. Cnsl: Antonelli Harrington & Thompson
Patent: 9,454,748 (System and method for data management)
GoTV Networks LLC v. Macy’s, Inc. et al. (multiple cases) (E.D. Tex.).
Judge: District Judge Rodney Gilstrap
Claims: Infringement
Defendants:
- Macy’s, Inc. d/b/a Macy’s
- The Kroger Co.
- Target Corporation d/b/a Target
Plaintiff: GoTV Networks LLC
Pls. Cnsl: Daignault Iyer
Patents: 8,009,619 (Server-side wireless communications link support for mobile handheld devices); 8,060,594 (Client-side wireless communications link support for mobile handheld devices); 11,317,238 (Monitoring outdoor and indoor regions with mobile devices) [asserted against Target only]; 9,766,080 (Systems and methods for indoor and outdoor mobile device navigation) [asserted against Target only]
Local Interest, LLC v. Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc. et al. (multiple cases) (E.D. Tex.).
Claims: Infringement
Defendants:
- Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc. d/b/a Ulta Beauty
- Macy’s, Inc. d/b/a Macy’s
Plaintiff: Local Interest, LLC
Pls. Cnsl: Rozier Hardt McDonough
Patents: 7,532,899 (System for providing location-based services in a wireless network, such as locating sets of desired locations); 8,774,834 (System for providing location-based services in a wireless network, such as locating sets of desired locations)
Near Field Electronics LLC v. Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Inc. et al. (E.D. Tex., D. Tex.).
Judge: District Judge Robert W. Schroeder, III
Claims: Infringement
Defendants:
- Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Inc.
- Fat Brands Inc. d/b/a Great American Cookies
- Athleta LLC
- Banana Republic, LLC
- Old Navy, LLC
- The Gap, Inc.
- H&M Fashion USA, Inc.
- Kohl’s, Inc. d/b/a Kohl’s
- Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc.
- ZAGG, Inc. d/b/a ZAGG
- Zara USA, Inc.
- Zumiez Inc.
- The Wendy’s Company
- Whole Foods Market Services LLC
- Yum! Brands, Inc. d/b/a KFC
Plaintiff: Near Field Electronics LLC
Pls. Cnsl: Shea Beaty
Patents: 6,691,201 (Dual mode USB-PS/2 device); 6,742,071 (Real-time I/O processor used to implement bus interface protocols); 6,959,350 (Configurable USB interface with virtual register architecture); 6,996,727 (Power supply for universal serial bus interface with programmable bus pullup resistor); 7,373,531 (Signal detection method, frequency detection method, power consumption control method, signal detecting device, frequency detecting device, power consumption control device and electronic apparatus)
Nearby Systems LLC v. Raising Cane’s Restaurants, LLC (E.D. Tex.).
Judges: District Judge Rodney Gilstrap; Magistrate Judge Roy S. Payne
Claims: Infringement
Defendant: Raising Cane’s Restaurants, LLC
Plaintiff: Nearby Systems LLC
Pls. Cnsl: Rozier Hardt McDonough
Patents: 10,469,980 (Mashing mapping content displayed on mobile devices); 11,937,145 (Mashing mapping content displayed on mobile devices); 12,185,177 (Mashing mapping content displayed on mobile devices); 9,532,164 (Mashing mapping content displayed on mobile devices)
Pointwise Ventures LLC v. PVH Corp. et al. (S.D.N.Y.).
Claims: Infringement
Defendants:
- PVH Corp.
- Zara USA, Inc.
Plaintiff: Pointwise Ventures LLC
Pls. Cnsl: Rabicoff Law
Patent: 8,471,812 (Pointing and identification device)
Querytron LLC v. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (E.D. Tex.).
Judges: District Judge Rodney Gilstrap; Magistrate Judge Roy S. Payne
Claims: Infringement
Defendant: Lowe’s Companies, Inc.
Plaintiff: Querytron LLC
Pls. Cnsl: Rabicoff Law
Patent: 10,534,820 (Enhanced buyer-oriented search results)
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