U.S. Patent Office Reaffirms Key f'real Blender Patent
EMERYVILLE, Calif., Dec. 12, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- On November 30, 2016, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office completely rejected a challenge to the validity of f'real Foods, Inc.'s ("f'real") U.S. Patent No. 7,520,658 ("'658 patent") by Hamilton Beach Brands, Inc. ("Hamilton Beach"). f'real is a pioneer in the field of frozen, self-serve milkshake, smoothie and frozen coffee products and is sold at over 17,000 locations across the United States and Canada, including convenience stores, colleges, universities and military bases.
On October 3, 2014, f'real filed a patent enforcement action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware to stop Hamilton Beach and its partner, Hershey Creamery Company ("Hershey Creamery"), from continuing to copy the self-cleaning blender inventions described in f'real's '658 patent. Hamilton Beach responded by petitioning the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to re-examine the validity of this patent.
The November 30 decision rejected Hamilton Beach's patent invalidity arguments, denied Hamilton Beach's request for institution of an inter partes review (IPR) proceeding and reaffirmed the validity of f'real's '658 patent. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office also agreed with f'real's interpretation of the '658 patent for purposes of proving infringement by Hamilton Beach and Hershey Creamery.
As a result of this decision, f'real plans to vigorously move forward with its efforts in Delaware District Court to stop Hamilton Beach and Hershey from continuing to infringe f'real's valuable patent rights and is seeking a permanent injunction and asking the court to order a recall of all infringing blenders.
President of f'real, Dinsh Guzdar, said, "This decision is a critical step toward our assertion of f'real's proprietary technology. We take patent infringement very seriously and we will continue to protect our patent rights. f'real looks forward to continued innovation and growth as the top novelty product in convenience stores."
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has awarded f'real 15 U.S. patents for its innovative self-serve blender technologies.
About f'real foods
Established in 1998, f'real foods designs, sells and markets blended frozen beverages in more than 17,000 locations across the U.S. and Canada including convenience stores, military bases and colleges & universities. The patented in-store blending systems blends delicious and authentic milkshakes, smoothies and frozen coffee products at the touch of a button in under a minute! As the #1 frozen novelty offering in convenience stores, f'real's success can be attributed to continued innovation in the category and quality products, all made with real ingredients. f'real foods is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Rich Products Corporation based in Emeryville, CA. For more information, visit freal.com.
SOURCE f’real foods
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