Cordance v. Amazon: Summary Judgment a Mixed Bag

Amazon recently lost its motion for summary judgment on several patent infringement claims brought by Cordance Corp. in the companies’ dispute over online purchasing technology. Cordance’s patents-in-suit are U.S. Patent Numbers 6,757,710; 6,044,205; 5,862,325; and 6,088,717. Amazon’s patent-in-suit is U.S. Patent Number 6,269,369.

In what was described as a classic “battle of the experts," Magistrate Judge Mary Pat Thynge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware said in an opinion issued Monday that a trial was necessary to resolve Cordance infringement claims, but that a judgment of no willful infringement with respect to three Cordance patents would be issued in Amazon's favor. Overall, Judge Thynge denied Amazon’s motion for summary judgment of noninfringement with respect to two patents, and denied two attempts to invalidate a third.

In this patent infringement suit, Cordance alleges that Amazon’s “One Click” purchasing feature and other services on its retail site infringe several Cordance patents that relate to technology used to manage user information in online purchases.

The case is Cordance Corp. v. Amazon.com Inc., case number 06-cv-00491, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.