Equitable IP Files Three Patent Infringement Lawsuits Asserting Standard Essential Patents Advancing Spherix Monetization Program

NEW YORK, Aug. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Spherix Incorporated (Nasdaq: SPEX) an intellectual property development company committed to the fostering and monetization of intellectual property and the advancement of technology, today announced that as part of its previously announced collaboration with Equitable IP Holdings LLC ("Equitable" or the "Equitable IP Program"), Equitable has filed three additional lawsuits for the infringement of valuable patent assets formerly owned by Nortel Networks.

The Equitable IP Program is designed to cost effectively and rapidly monetize a portion of Spherix's patent portfolio. As part of this agreement, Equitable brought together key leadership from the areas of investment fund managers, patent litigation, and patent monetization strategists, to monetize these valuable assets. The three cases were filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware against:

• Cincinnati Bell, Inc., case number 1:16-cv-00715-UNA
• Echostar Corporation, case number 1:16-cv-00716-UNA, and
• Frontier Communications Corporation, case number 1:16-cv-00714-UNA.

The combined market capitalization of the defendants named in the complaints is in excess of $26 billion.  The infringement claims relate to three patents in total:

• U.S. Patent No. RE40,999 ("the '999 patent"), entitled "VLAN Frame Format". The '999 patent is necessary to the practice of an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers ("IEEE") networking standard that supports virtual local area networks (VLANs) on an Ethernet network.
• U.S. Patent No. 6,970,461 ("the '461 patent"), entitled "Access Control Enhancements for Delivery of Video and Other Service". The inventions of the '461 patent resolve technical problems related to satellites, video services cable modem and optic fiber networks.
• U.S. Patent No. 7,478,167 ("the '167 patent"), entitled "Resource Allocation Using An Auto-Discovery Mechanism For Provider Provisioned Layer-2 and Layer-3 Virtual Private Networks". The inventions of the '167 patent deal with inventive concepts that are rooted in computerized electronic data communications networks, and an improved method to establish or maintain VPN data-transmission tunnels.

The following table shows the various patents that each defendant is alleged to have infringed:

Dean Becker, Chairman of Equitable commented, "These three suits are just the start of an aggressive litigation based licensing effort to monetize these valuable assets.  We will file additional suits in the future, to further assist Spherix derive value.  Equitable is growing in size and scope and we are glad to be working with Spherix, as we work to become one of the premier patent monetization funds."

Anthony Hayes, Chief Executive Officer of Spherix, stated, "We are extremely pleased to announce these new litigations as part of our continuing objective to expand our monetization efforts under the Equitable IP Program. We believe there is widespread infringement of each of these patents and we are excited about these additional steps towards value creation.  We will continue to work with Equitable to monetize these assets to bring value for our shareholders, and we anticipate more infringement cases in the very near future."

About Spherix

Spherix Incorporated was launched in 1967 as a scientific research company. Spherix is committed to advancing innovation by active participation in the patent market. Spherix draws on portfolios of pioneering technology patents to partner with and support product innovation.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Words such as "may," "might," "will," "should," "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "continue," "predict," "forecast," "project," "plan," "intend" or similar expressions, or statements regarding intent, belief, or current expectations, are forward-looking statements. While the Company believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on any such forward-looking statements, which are based on information available to us on the date of this release. These forward looking statements are based upon current estimates and assumptions and are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including without limitation those set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), not limited to Risk Factors relating to its patent business contained therein. Thus, actual results could be materially different. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

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SOURCE Spherix Incorporated

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