`571-272-7822
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`Paper 25
`Entered: December 3, 2021
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`UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
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`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
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`HP INC.,1
`Petitioner,
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`v.
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`SYNKLOUD TECHNOLOGIES, LLC,
`Patent Owner.
`
`IPR2020-01271
`Patent 9,239,686 B2
`
`
`Before SALLY C. MEDLEY, LYNNE E. PETTIGREW, and
`KRISTI L. R. SAWERT, Administrative Patent Judges.
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`PETTIGREW, Administrative Patent Judge.
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`ORDER
`Granting Patent Owner’s
`Motion to Seal
`37 C.F.R. §§ 42.5, 42.14, 42.54
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`1 Microsoft Corporation was terminated from the proceeding. Paper 22.
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`IPR2020-01271
`Patent 9,239,686 B2
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`In its unopposed Motion to Seal, Patent Owner seeks to seal Exhibits
`2029, 2030, and 2039. Paper 11 (“PO Mot.”). Patent Owner represents that
`Exhibits 2030 and 2039 are two license agreements between Patent Owner
`and third parties. Id. at 2.2 Patent Owner represents that Exhibit 2029 is an
`“associated claim chart” that apparently includes information regarding one of
`the licensee’s products. Id. Patent Owner contends that the information in the
`license agreements “is confidential by its terms.” Id. at 3. Patent Owner
`argues that making the exhibits public “would potentially vitiate the licenses
`as a possible breach thereof and/or expose [Patent Owner] to liability.” Id.
`There is a strong public policy that favors making information filed in
`an inter partes review open to the public. Garmin Int’l, Inc. v. Cuozzo Speed
`Techs. LLC, IPR2012-00001, Paper 34, 1–2 (PTAB Mar. 14, 2013). The
`standard for granting a motion to seal is good cause. 37 C.F.R. § 42.54. That
`standard includes showing that the information addressed in the motion to seal
`is truly confidential, and that such confidentiality outweighs the strong public
`interest in having the record open to the public. See Garmin, Paper 34 at 2–3.
`We have considered the arguments presented by Patent Owner and
`determine that good cause has been established for sealing the documents
`identified. Specifically, Patent Owner demonstrates that the information
`sought to be sealed per the motion contains confidential information regarding
`“licenses between the owner of the ’686 Patent and two recognized
`corporations, in consideration of payment of fees, along with an associated
`claim chart.” PO Mot. 2. Accordingly, we grant Patent Owner’s Motion to
`Seal, including Patent Owner’s unopposed request for entry of the Proposed
`
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`2 The pages of the Motion are not numbered. We refer to the numbers of the
`pages beginning with the title page as number 1.
`2
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`IPR2020-01271
`Patent 9,239,686 B2
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`Protective Order (Exhibit 2036), which is the same as the protective order
`entered in earlier proceedings involving patents in the same family as the
`’686 patent, such as IPR2020-01031, and is similar to the Board’s default
`protective order provided in the Office Patent Trial Practice Guide. See Patent
`Trial and Appeal Board Consolidated Trial Practice Guide (Nov. 2019),
`https://www.uspto.gov/TrialPracticeGuideConsolidated, (Appendix B).
`Accordingly, the record will be preserved in its entirety, and Exhibits
`2029, 2030, and 2039 will not be expunged or made public, pending the
`outcome of any appeal taken from a final written decision. At the conclusion
`of any appeal, or, if no appeal is taken, after the time for filing a notice of
`appeal has expired, the documents may be made public. See id. at 21–22. At
`that time, either party may file a motion to expunge sealed documents from the
`record pursuant to 37 C.F.R. § 42.56.
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`It is:
`ORDERED that Patent Owner’s Motion to Seal is granted; and
`FURTHER ORDERED that Exhibits 2029, 2030, and 2039 will
`remain sealed as outlined per this order.
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`3
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`IPR2020-01271
`Patent 9,239,686 B2
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`For PETITIONER:
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`Joseph Micallef
`Scott Border
`SIDLEY AUSTIN LLP
`jmicallef@sidley.com
`sborder@sidley.com
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`For PATENT OWNER:
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`Gregory Gonsalves
`Yeasun Yoon
`CAPITOL IP LAW GROUP, PLLC
`gonsalves@capitoliplaw.com
`yoon@capitoliplaw.com
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`4
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