Monetization Firms and Inventor-Controlled NPEs Hit E-Commerce and Software in Q1

The top market sector for NPE litigation in Q1 2026 was E-Commerce and Software, accounting for 37% of the defendants added to patent litigation campaigns during the quarter. Consumer Electronics and PCs saw the second highest amount of NPE litigation in Q3, followed by Industrial, Networking, Financial Services, and Mobile Communications and Devices (with a tie between the last two).

Among the NPEs hitting E-Commerce and Software in Q1 were a variety of plaintiffs linked to established patent monetization firms and licensing companies. For instance, Nearby Systems LLC, an entity tied to Texas monetization firm Empire IP LLC, filed yet another round of cases throughout the quarter, targeting mobile apps with mapping features. Also, Equitable IP Corporation plaintiff Induction Devices LLC filed two rounds of complaints in early and late March against a variety of companies offering contactless credit cards based on the EMV standard. Mid-March also saw Bedrock IP Co., Ltd. launch a campaign targeting cloud computing platforms with predictive scaling functionality through plaintiff Sandstone Innovation, LLC. Additionally, DataCloud Technologies, LLC, a plaintiff associated with IP Investments Group LLC (d/b/a IPinvestments Group), filed multiple rounds of cases from January through March (see here and here), variously targeting websites with user-facing features like video playback as well as web infrastructure and certain software products.

Other monetization firms tagging this sector in Q1 included entities linked to Dynamic IP Deals LLC (d/b/a DynaIP) through Pueblo Nuevo LLC: Random Chat LLC filed a set of new cases targeting websites with live customer support chat features in late February; while MISSED CALL, LLC filed an additional complaint targeting call management systems that support missed call notifications on the same day. Moreover, Flash Uplink LLC, a subsidiary of publicly traded Quest Patent Research Corporation, filed its first case in late January over server products with certain firmware update functionality.

Also hitting this sector in Q1 were a group of New Mexico plaintiffs linked to a patent monetization professional who appears to be associated with a growing number of other litigating NPEs: ContactWave LLC filed a case targeting advertising services in streaming platforms in mid-March; xMatrix LLC filed a round of complaints over camera management software and Wi-Fi security cameras, also in March; SynchroFi LLC brought a group of suits against companies with products supporting authentication using one-time password authentication in February and March; Querytron LLC filed a new case over search and e-commerce functionality used in online retail websites in February; and ReadyComm LLC fired off a new round of complaints over telephone systems with various features in January.

A variety of inventor-controlled plaintiffs also filed litigation in the e-Commerce and Software space last quarter. Among them was Gaea, LLC, which brought its inaugural litigation over caching and storage libraries used in social media platforms in late March; and Activemap L.L.C., which filed its first batch of complaints against various retailers with websites offering mapping features in late February, following a round of German litigation by an affiliate. Additionally, inventor-controlled Adaptive Avenue Associates, Inc. filed a new complaint over websites incorporating image slideshows, also in late February; Peer Global Inc. targeted software with user interface features related to tab navigation in a late January case; and AlmondNet, Inc. brought yet another suit over targeted advertising technology in late January as well.

See RPX’s first-quarter review for more on the key trends that shaped patent litigation in Q1 2026.