DETAILED ACTION
Acknowledgements
The amendment filed on 11/13/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 1-8 and 13-14 are pending.
Claims 1-8 and 13-14 have been examined.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 11/13/2025 has been entered.
Response to Amendment/Arguments
Claim 1 is amended.
Claims 13-14 are newly added.
Regarding applicant’s arguments on Claim Rejections - 35 U.S.C. §103, the amendment overcomes the rejection. The rejection has been withdrawn.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC §101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1-8 and 13-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
Analysis
In the instant case, claims 1-8 are directed to a system, claim 13 is directed to a method, and claim 14 is directed to an apparatus. Therefore, these claims fall within the four statutory categories of invention.
The claim(s) recite(s) processing exchange transaction of right of publicity. Specifically, the claims recite “(a) authenticating and digitizing a right of publicity into at least a first and second right of publicity object, the right of publicity belonging to a right of publicity owner, and storing, in at least one [system memory storage device], the at least first and second right of publicity object, each object including at least one right of publicity object identifier and an initial value associated with a value of the right of publicity rights; (b) creating at least a first and second group of fractional tokens each associated with the at least a first and second right of publicity object; (c) assigning each fractional token a value and a unique identifier and a key associating the fractional token with its respective first or second object, wherein a sum of the value of each fractional token of a group is equal to its respective object value, each fractional token of a group being linked to another fractional token of the same group via [cryptographic hashes]; (d) receiving a request from a [system processor] to create a whole token when a threshold amount of fractional tokens of a group of fractional tokens is associated with a portfolio table; (e) creating at least one whole token, the at least one whole token comprising one of the first and second group of fractional tokens and representing a portion or all of the object value of the respective group of fractional tokens; (f) exchanging one of a whole token and fractional token between two portfolio tables, the exchange being recorded on a transaction table including a first user identifier portion, a second user identifier portion, a right of publicity object identifier portion, a whole token portion, and a fractional token portion and being recorded with a chain of a plurality of exchange transactions linked via [cryptographic hash] on one of a [public and private ledger]; and (g) updating the two portfolio tables to reflect the exchange transaction.”, which is “commercial or legal interactions” within the “certain methods of organizing human activity” grouping of abstract ideas in prong one of step 2A of the Alice/Mayo test (See MPEP 2106) because the claims involve a series of steps for processing exchange transaction of right of publicity. Accordingly, the claims recite an abstract idea.
This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application because, when analyzed under prong two of step 2A of the Alice/Mayo test (See MPEP 2106), the additional element(s) of the claim(s) such as the use of system memory storage device, cryptographic hashes, system processor, public and private ledger merely use(s) a computer as a tool to perform an abstract idea. The processors and memories are recited at a high-level of generality (i.e., as a generic processor performing a generic computer function of exchange transaction of right of publicity) such that it amounts no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic computer components. Accordingly, the additional elements do not impose any meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea, and the claims are directed to an abstract idea.
The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. As discussed above with respect to integration of the abstract idea into a practical application, the additional element of using system memory storage device, cryptographic hashes, system processor, public and private ledger steps amounts to no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic computer components. Mere instructions to apply an exception using a generic computer components cannot provide an inventive concept. The claim is not patent eligible.
Dependent claim 2 describes right of publicity object identifier. Dependent claims 3-4 describe right of publicity object attributes. Dependent claims 5-6 describes right of publicity object value. Dependent claim 7 describes fractional tokens. Dependent claim 8 describe recordation of exchange transaction. These claims further recite the abstract idea of certain methods of organizing human activity. This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application because the additional element(s) of the claim(s) such as the use of system memory storage device, cryptographic hashes, system processor, public and private ledger merely use(s) a computer as a tool to perform an abstract idea. The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. The claims are not patent eligible.
Viewed as a whole, the combination of elements recited in the claims simply recite the concept of processing exchange transaction of right of publicity. The claims do not, for example, purport to improve the functioning of the computer itself. Nor do they effect an improvement in any other technology or technical field.
The use of a system memory storage device, cryptographic hashes, system processor, public and private ledger as tools to implement the abstract idea does not render the claim patent eligible because it does not provide meaningful limitations beyond generally linking the use of an abstract idea to a particular technological environment and requires no more than a computer performing functions that correspond to acts required to carry out the abstract idea.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-8 and 13-14 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 101 set forth in this Office action. The closest prior art of record is US20220076256A1 (“Anderson”). Anderson discloses a system and digital exchange for managing intangible personal rights, (Fig. 2) comprising: (a) at least one system processing unit connected with at least one system memory storage device; (¶0007) (b) at least a first and second object stored in the at least one system memory storage device, each object including at least one object identifier, the at least first and second objects being digitized rights of a right of publicity owner; (¶¶0024-26) (c) at least a first and second group of fractional token each associated with the at least a first and second right of publicity object, each fractional token containing a value and a unique identifier and a key associating the fractional token with its respective first or second object, wherein a sum of the value of each fractional token of a group is equal to its respective object value, each fractional token of a group being linked to another fractional token of the same group via cryptographic hashes; (¶¶0027-33) (d) at least one whole token comprising one of the first and second group of fractional tokens, wherein a whole token represents a portion or all of the object value of the respective group of fractional tokens, the whole token being created by a user of the system and exchange when the user owns a threshold amount of fractional tokens of a group of fractional tokens. (¶¶0031-33) (f) wherein the first user authorizes transfer of a whole token or a fractional token of the at least one portfolio table to a second user and an exchange transaction including the first user identifier, an identifier of the second user, at least one of the first and second right of publicity object identifiers, and one of a whole token or fractional token is created on the transaction table, the exchange transaction being recorded with a chain of a plurality of exchange transactions linked via cryptographic hash on one of a public and private ledger. (¶¶0033-36). However, the prior art does not teach, wherein an object is a right of publicity object; the at least first and second objects being authenticated; the objects having an initial value associated with a value of the right of publicity rights; (e) at least one portfolio table stored with the at least one system memory storage device and configured to include each of a user identifier, right of publicity object identifiers, whole tokens and fractional tokens, the portfolio table including at least a first user identifier, the first and second right of publicity object identifiers, the at least one whole token, and at least one fractional token from the at least a first and second group of fractional tokens, wherein the at least one system processing unit is configured to update the portfolio table to record at least one fractional or whole token; and (f) a transaction table stored with the at least one system memory storage device and configured to record a whole token and fractional token exchange, between users of the system and exchange, the transaction table including a first user identifier portion, a second user identifier potion, a right of publicity object identifier portion, a whole token portion, and a fractional token portion, , wherein the at least one system processing unit is configured to update the portfolio table to record change of the whole token or the fractional token after the exchange transaction.
Conclusion
The following prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US20210133735A1 (“Maim”) discloses Token-based transactional systems and methods. It proposes a network transactional system, comprising a set of token nodes (TN), a set of user nodes (UN) and a set of provider nodes (PN), the nodes being capable of executing an executable contract for a user node to obtain token account units (Voucher Tokens) by reserving (R) reserve account units according to a value of the token units which itself varies according to the reserve, the number of token units in circulation and the reserve ratio (RR). A provider node is associated with each token node and the token is representative of a product or asset (good, service, right or other benefit) of the provider, or a group of such products or assets.
US20220222657A1(“Nichani”) discloses a method and system for managing life cycle of a tokenized real asset in a Blockchain-based ecosystem. The asset tokens of the real asset are put up for sale on a token issuance platform and the proceeds from the sale are distributed to the asset owner, etc. The listing of asset tokens in the Blockchain-based ecosystem requires project consensus which involves participation of key stakeholders who own utility tokens to participate in the community decision making. The asset tokens are then subjected to trading and maintenance which includes maintaining money flow corresponding to the real asset, selling the asset tokens by the asset token holders via an asset token exchange, and settlement of rewards to asset token holders via a settlement engine. Upon the end-of-term of the real asset, the asset tokens are terminated, and exit is enabled from the Blockchain-based ecosystem.
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/YINGYING ZHOU/Examiner, Art Unit 3697