Complaint must be amended or face dismissal
Eidos Communications, et al. v. Skype Technologies SA, et al., Civ. No.09-234-SLR, February 24, 2010.
Robinson J. Defendant’s motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim or, in the alternative, for a more definite statement is granted in part.
The patents are all directed to methods of controlling the transmission of telephonic voice messages or information via voice mail systems. Plaintiffs claim that defendants' communication system products and/or methodologies meet each and every limitation of at least one claim of each patent. Defendants filed a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim or, in the alternative, for a more definite statement. The complaint does not provide a general product category. Plaintiffs allege that defendants' "communication system products and/or methodologies" infringe its patents, without settling conclusively on whether they are targeting either a product or a method. Plaintiffs were obligated to specify, at a minimum, a general class of products or a general identification of the alleged infringing methods. The court concludes that Rule 8 requires plaintiffs to provide more information. Plaintiffs are directed to amend their complaint, or face dismissal of their action.
