ScorpCast v. MG Freesites: Federal Circuit Appeal Voluntarily Dismissed After 570 Days
ScorpCast, LLC brought a patentability challenge to the Federal Circuit against MG Freesites Ltd. (now also named Aylo Freesites Ltd.) over US9965780B2, a patent covering systems and methods for user-generated video reviews. After 570 days of appellate proceedings, both parties jointly stipulated to dismiss the appeals, each bearing its own costs.
Federal Circuit appeal over video review patent ends by joint stipulation
ScorpCast, LLC filed Appeal No. 22-1913 at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on 21 June 2022, challenging a patentability determination relating to US9965780B2. The patent, assigned application number US15/688566, covers systems and methods for providing user-generated video reviews — a technology relevant to consumer-facing platforms that host or aggregate video content contributed by end users. The defendants, MG Freesites Ltd. and Aylo Freesites Ltd., were the appellees at the Federal Circuit stage.
The appeal closed on 12 January 2024 when both parties filed a joint stipulation to voluntarily dismiss under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 42(b)(1). The court ordered the appeals dismissed as stipulated. Each side was directed to bear its own costs, meaning neither party obtained a fee or cost award. The basis of termination is recorded as voluntary dismissal, and the public record does not specify whether the dismissal was with or without prejudice at the underlying district or PTAB level.
A 570-day appellate lifespan followed by a mutual walk-away is consistent with parties reaching a negotiated resolution — whether a licensing agreement, settlement, or commercial accommodation — though no such terms are publicly confirmed. The decision to split costs evenly, rather than seek costs against the other side, typically suggests both parties had reason to exit without escalation. What drove the resolution, and whether ScorpCast retains enforcement rights over US9965780B2 against other parties, remains unknown from the available public record.
Filing to resolution in 570 days
570 days from filing to voluntary dismissal at the Federal Circuit
What the voluntary dismissal means for ScorpCast and MG Freesites
FRAP 42(b)(1): joint stipulation to dismiss
Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 42(b)(1) allows parties to voluntarily dismiss an appeal by filing a signed agreement. No court finding on the merits is required. Here, both ScorpCast and MG Freesites jointly signed the stipulation, signalling a mutual decision to end the appellate proceedings rather than await a Federal Circuit ruling on patentability.
Procedural exit — no merits rulingPublic record is silent on prejudice designation
Voluntary dismissals can be with prejudice (permanently barring refiling of the same claims) or without prejudice (leaving open the possibility of future action). The stipulation in this case does not specify either. Practitioners should treat the legal status of ScorpCast’s rights as unresolved from the public record alone — private settlement terms, if any, may govern what can or cannot be reasserted.
Prejudice status unconfirmedEach side bears its own costs — no winner declared
The court’s order confirmed that each party bears its own appellate costs. This even-split arrangement is a hallmark of negotiated exits: neither party sought to characterise itself as the prevailing party. Under 35 U.S.C. § 285, exceptional case fee awards require a prevailing party finding — the absence of one here forecloses that avenue for both sides.
No fee exposure for either partyPatentability of US9965780B2 remains judicially unresolved
The appeal arose from an invalidity or cancellation action targeting US9965780B2. Because the Federal Circuit dismissed without ruling, no authoritative appellate judgment on the patent’s validity exists from this proceeding. Third parties operating in the user-generated video review space cannot rely on this case as having invalidated or confirmed the patent’s claims.
Validity question openFull party and counsel information
| Role | Name | Type | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plaintiff | ScorpCast, LLC | Company | Patent assertion entity — holder of US9965780B2 covering user-generated video review systemsSearch in Eureka ↗ |
| Defendant | MG FREESITES, LTD. | Company | MG Freesites Ltd. (Aylo Freesites Ltd.) — operator of large-scale consumer video content platformsSearch in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff counsel | Fred Williams | Attorney | Counsel for ScorpCast, LLCSearch in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff counsel | John Wittenzellner | Attorney | Counsel for ScorpCast, LLCSearch in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff counsel | Todd Eric Landis | Attorney | Counsel for ScorpCast, LLCSearch in Eureka ↗ |
| Presiding judge | Judge / | Chief Judge | Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit — Chief JudgeSearch in Eureka ↗ |
Stipulation of dismissal — official text
The joint stipulation invokes FRAP 42(b)(1) — a purely procedural vehicle that produces no substantive ruling. The court’s order mirrors the parties’ agreed language verbatim and confirms the cost allocation but makes no finding on patentability, validity, or infringement. For practitioners, this means US9965780B2’s claim scope is unaffected by this proceeding: the patent was neither confirmed nor invalidated. The symmetric cost order suggests neither party positioned itself as having prevailed, which is consistent with a negotiated exit rather than a unilateral capitulation by either side.
US9965780B2 — System and Methods for User-Generated Video Reviews
US9965780B2 (application number US15/688566) protects systems and methods for providing user-generated video reviews. The patent sits at the intersection of e-commerce, social media, and consumer video — covering how platforms can capture, host, and surface video content created by end users in the context of reviewing products, services, or experiences. The granted claims define specific technical implementations of this workflow, meaning not every video review platform necessarily falls within scope, but the patent’s breadth in this commercially active space makes it a notable enforcement asset.
User-generated video review functionality is now standard across major e-commerce and media platforms. As consumer video adoption has grown, patents covering the underlying systems — ingestion, storage, retrieval, and display of user video in a review context — have become strategically valuable. ScorpCast’s pursuit of MG Freesites, a large-scale video platform operator, all the way to the Federal Circuit suggests confidence in the patent’s enforceability. The absence of an invalidation ruling means the patent retains full presumptive validity, and competing platforms in this space should assess their own exposure carefully.
Should your platform run an FTO check against US9965780B2?
Any product team building or operating a user-generated video review feature — whether in e-commerce, marketplace, SaaS review tools, or consumer apps — should evaluate US9965780B2 before launch or expansion. The patent survived Federal Circuit appeal proceedings without being invalidated, and the patentee has demonstrated willingness to litigate at appellate level. Platforms with features that allow users to record, upload, or submit video reviews alongside product or service listings are most likely to fall within the relevant claim categories.
PatSnap Eureka’s FTO Search Agent enables R&D and legal teams to map US9965780B2’s claims against their specific implementation, identify design-around opportunities, and flag related continuation or family patents that may pose parallel risk. Claim monitoring alerts will notify your team if new continuations are filed or if claim scope is amended — keeping your FTO current as ScorpCast’s portfolio evolves.
Run a freedom-to-operate analysis on US9965780B2 to assess your product’s exposure
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What this case signals for the user-generated video IP landscape
A Federal Circuit appeal over video review technology resolving by mutual walkaway raises practical questions for any platform operating in the UGV space.
US9965780B2 remains an active enforcement risk for video platforms
No court has invalidated US9965780B2. The Federal Circuit’s dismissal leaves the patent’s claims legally intact. Platforms hosting user-generated video reviews — particularly those with rating, ranking, or aggregation features — should treat this patent as a live risk and consider whether their implementations overlap with its claim scope.
Joint cost-bearing stipulations often signal private settlement activity
When sophisticated litigants exit a Federal Circuit appeal with a symmetric cost order and no merits ruling, it typically suggests a confidential agreement exists. For competitors of MG Freesites, this pattern is worth monitoring: if ScorpCast has already licensed its patent to a market leader, it may pursue others next.
ScorpCast v MG — key questions answered
The Federal Circuit appeal was voluntarily dismissed by joint stipulation under FRAP 42(b)(1) on 12 January 2024, after 570 days. Both parties agreed to bear their own costs. No merits ruling on the patentability of US9965780B2 was issued.
No. The Federal Circuit dismissed the appeal by stipulation without issuing any ruling on validity or patentability. US9965780B2 retains its presumption of validity. The underlying cancellation or invalidity action that gave rise to the appeal was not resolved by a court judgment.
FRAP 42(b)(1) allows parties to end an appeal by filing a signed joint stipulation. The court does not rule on the merits. In patent cases, this means no appellate precedent is created, no validity finding is made, and the patent’s legal status is unchanged by the dismissal. Private settlement terms, if any, are not publicly disclosed.
The defendants are MG Freesites Ltd. and Aylo Freesites Ltd. The presence of both names is consistent with a corporate name change or restructuring — MG Freesites appears to have been rebranded or reorganised as Aylo Freesites Ltd. during or around the period of this litigation.
US9965780B2 covers systems and methods for providing user-generated video reviews. Platforms that allow consumers to record and submit video reviews of products or services — including e-commerce marketplaces, review aggregators, and consumer apps — may fall within the patent’s claim scope. An FTO analysis is advisable for any team building in this category.
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