A news release from Global Tel*Link touting a "capstone victory" in a Patent Trial and Appeals Board (PTAB) review of a patent issued to industry competitor Securus is "grossly inaccurate" and contains "clearly misleading" statements, Securus said in a news release Monday. The GTL news release, issued Friday, said Securus "tried to patent well known ideas ... [and] got caught with their hand in the cookie jar," after the PTAB issued a final decision finding Securus' claims in the patent to be "unpatentable." The GTL release also said that recent PTAB proceedings revealed "Securus misled patent examiners while seeking patents." Securus "corrected" 10 statements made in GTL's news release -- most refuting claims of misleading patent officials and that GTL is "winning" the patent battle. In the release, Securus said GTL "gives the carriers in our industry a black eye" because of its current and past behavior. GTL didn't comment.
Oklahoma officials asked a federal court to stay an FCC inmate calling service order, pending further judicial review of an underlying ICS challenge. The commission lacked the authority to cap intrastate ICS rates at levels that were below what the state negotiated and below provider costs, said Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, Solicitor General Patrick Wyrick and Danny Honeycutt, general counsel of the Oklahoma County Sheriff's Office. They filed a motion Monday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in the consolidated case (Global Tel*Link v. FCC, No. 15-1461). The state officials said the FCC also lacked "relevant expertise" and disregarded evidence in writing a rule that not only was arbitrary and capricious but would harm Oklahoma's correctional facilities and inmates. The order will cause "dramatic" revenue reductions that force Oklahoma "to either abandon its inmate welfare programs, shift revenues away from other critical public safety programs, or eliminate inmate calling services if the State cannot satisfactorily renegotiate the contracts with its carriers," the officials said. Because Oklahoma is likely to win on the merits and would suffer irreparable harm, they said, the D.C. Circuit should stay the rule. The Oklahoma officials filed a separate motion asking the D.C. Circuit for leave to seek a stay, which came after the court's Feb. 5 deadline for such requests (see 1602040023). They said they originally had filed their legal challenge in the 10th Circuit, which didn't transfer the case to the D.C. Circuit until Feb. 16, at the FCC's request. "Oklahoma is the only party seeking a stay in this case that actually operates correctional facilities, has law enforcement interests, and receives rather than pays site commissions. Oklahoma thus has unique irreparable harms and a unique perspective on the public interest," the officials said. In an order Tuesday, the D.C. Circuit gave the FCC until noon, Friday to file a response to both Oklahoma motions. ICS providers CenturyLink, Global Tel*Link, Securus and Telmate also have sought stays, and recently filed reply briefs in support of their motions (see 1602190065), after the FCC and intervenors filed opposing briefs (see 1602120060).
Global Tel*Link claimed a "capstone victory" in its patent litigation against fellow inmate calling service provider Securus after the Patent Trial and Appeals Board issued a "final decision" Thursday, ruling against the validity of Securus claims on its patent 7,805,457. "The PTAB found that the data analytics and gang-member tracking ideas claimed by Securus were not innovations at all, but a group of concepts and technologies patented or developed by GTL and others years before," GTL said in a release Friday. Securus issued a release that said it expects some of its patents to be invalidated, but said that would have "no impact" on the "quality, business operations, or scale advantage" of its "industry-leading patent portfolio and product set." Securus said GTL was taking advantage of PTAB rules changes.
Global Tel*Link claimed a "capstone victory" in its patent litigation against fellow inmate calling service provider Securus after the Patent Trial and Appeals Board issued a "final decision" Thursday, ruling against the validity of Securus claims on its patent 7,805,457. "The PTAB found that the data analytics and gang-member tracking ideas claimed by Securus were not innovations at all, but a group of concepts and technologies patented or developed by GTL and others years before," GTL said in a release Friday. Securus issued a release that said it expects some of its patents to be invalidated, but said that would have "no impact" on the "quality, business operations, or scale advantage" of its "industry-leading patent portfolio and product set." Securus said GTL was taking advantage of PTAB rules changes.
Inmate calling service providers asked a court to stay FCC ICS rate caps and other rules despite agency and intervenor arguments in defense of the rules (see 1602120060). CenturyLink, Global Tel*Link, Securus and Telmate filed replies Friday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, which is considering the providers' requests for a stay pending further review of their consolidated legal challenges to the FCC's order (Global Tel*Link v. FCC, No. 15-1461). "A stay is warranted because the FCC has no answer to CenturyLink’s core argument that the Order’s rate caps will prevent CenturyLink from recovering its cost of service in Texas and several other jurisdictions, in direct contravention of [Communications Act] section 276’s requirement that the FCC 'ensure that all [ICS] providers are fairly compensated for each and every ... call' they complete," CenturyLink said in its reply. "The FCC opposes Telmate’s stay motion by describing what the FCC did because it cannot explain why its decisions were authorized or reasonable. This does not overcome Telmate’s substantial case on the merits, which, coupled with the irreparable harm it will suffer and the balance of the equities, justifies a stay," Telmate said in its reply. GTL's reply is here and Securus' reply is here.
The FCC opposed inmate calling service provider motions to stay ICS rate caps and other rules, pending further judicial review of an underlying order. "No petitioner has met this Court’s stringent test for stay pending appeal, and the Commission’s long-overdue reforms should be permitted to go into effect," the FCC said in its opposition Friday filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in the consolidated case (Global Tel*Link v. FCC, No. 15-1461). The FCC opposition to a stay received support from the Wright Petitioners and various other groups backing the calling rights of inmates and their families. CenturyLink, GTL, Securus and Telmate have filed stay petitions.
CenturyLink asked a court to stay FCC inmate calling service rate caps pending further judicial review of ICS rules. "A stay is warranted because the rate caps will prevent CenturyLink from recovering its reasonable cost of providing ICS in several jurisdictions, in violation of the Communications Act's requirement that the Commission 'ensure that all [ICS] providers are fairly compensated,'" the telco said in a motion filed Friday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in the consolidated case (Global Tel*Link v. FCC, No. 15-1461). CenturyLink said the rate caps violated the act in other ways, and the telco is likely to succeed on the merits of its challenge and suffer irreparable harm absent a stay. The telco said its bid for an administrative stay is still pending at the commission (see 1601280033), but it filed its request with the D.C. Circuit to meet its deadline for any further stay motions (see 1602040023). Global Tel*Link, Securus and Telmate previously filed stay requests (see 1601270029 and 1601290067).
Further motions to stay FCC inmate calling service rules should be filed by Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said in a Wednesday order (Global Tel*Link v. FCC, No. 15-1461). The court granted an unopposed FCC motion to file a 35-page consolidated response to stay motions by Feb. 12 (see 1602010027), and gave stay movants until Feb. 19 to file replies. Global Tel*Link, Securus Technologies and Telmate have asked the court to stay ICS rules pending further review of underlying challenges (see 1601270029 and 1601290067). In addition, CenturyLink has asked the commission to stay its own order (see 1601280033). The Martha Wright Petitioners, which prodded the FCC to issue the rules, filed opposition in docket 12-375, saying CenturyLink had provided no support for treating its request differently from the requests of the other three ICS providers, which the agency denied (see 1601220040). On a separate track, the Martha Wright Petitioners asked the FCC to deny a Global Tel*Link petition to waive GTL’s duty to comply by March 17 with a rule prohibiting ICS providers from requiring prison customers to have minimum balances in their accounts. GTL asked that compliance be delayed until a June 20 "no minimum balance requirement" deadline for ICS providers on jail customers. In a filing posted Thursday, the Martha Wright Petitioners asked the FCC to review “certain advice that is apparently being provided to governmental agencies” on the ICS rules that the group suggested appeared to be trying to bypass or game the rules. While the petitioners said they hadn’t confirmed the authorship of a document and aren't asserting it came from an ICS provider, they said the contents were “startling,” particularly in light of a recent Wireline Bureau letter to Securus that had cited the company’s “mischaracterization” of the rules and had warned the agency would remain vigilant in monitoring industry implementation (see 1512040001).
The FCC sought court permission to file a consolidated 35-page response to separate motions by Global Tel*Link, Telmate and Securus to stay inmate calling service rules pending further judicial review of underlying legal challenges (see 1601270029 and 1601290067). The FCC also asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit for permission to slightly delay its response to Feb. 12, according to a motion the agency filed Friday that it said was unopposed by the stay movants (Global Tel*Link v. FCC, No. 15-1461 and consolidated underlying challenges). The commission already denied the parties' stay requests for administrative relief (see 1601220040) and is considering another stay request by CenturyLink (see 1601280033).
Telmate asked a court to stay FCC inmate calling service rules before they take effect, pending further review of its underlying challenge, according to a motion filed Friday. Global Tel*Link and Securus recently also sought stays in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (Global Tel*Link v. FCC, No. 15-1460 and consolidated cases) (see 1601270029), while CenturyLink recently asked the FCC for a stay (see 1601280033). The commission previously denied GTL, Securus and Telmate stay requests (see 1601220040).