Fed. Circ. Guidance For Means-Plus-Function Software Claims

Law360, New York (May 22, 2015, 10:33 AM EDT) -- On May 6, 2015, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued its decision in EON Corp. IP Holdings LLC v. AT&T Mobility LLC, No. 2014-1393, clarifying that for meeting the definiteness requirement of claims, a general purpose computer can provide sufficient structure for software-implemented means-plus-function claim elements only in very limited circumstances. As such, the court maintained its well-established rule from WMS Gaming "that the corresponding structure for a function performed by a software algorithm is the algorithm itself."[1] In doing so, the Federal Circuit took a narrow view of its decision from In re Katz Interactive Call Processing Patent Litigation, which held that a standard microprocessor can serve as sufficient structure for "functions [that] can be achieved by any general purpose computer without special programming."[2] That is, unless a claim limitation in means-plus-function form claims the most basic functions of a computer — such as storing, receiving or processing data — the specification must disclose an algorithm that implements the function. Even though means-plus-function claims are not as prevalent as they were at the turn of the century, patent applicants in the software industry could benefit from a resurgence in the claim format....

Law360 is on it, so you are, too.

A Law360 subscription puts you at the center of fast-moving legal issues, trends and developments so you can act with speed and confidence. Over 200 articles are published daily across more than 60 topics, industries, practice areas and jurisdictions.


A Law360 subscription includes features such as

  • Daily newsletters
  • Expert analysis
  • Mobile app
  • Advanced search
  • Judge information
  • Real-time alerts
  • 450K+ searchable archived articles

And more!

Experience Law360 today with a free 7-day trial.

Start Free Trial

Already a subscriber? Click here to login

Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!