Let me say that I am the type of person who needs facts and answers and I am not afraid to ask for direction(s) or help (must be a gender thing LOL). That being said, I called the USPTO and spoke with an examiner. I was very straight with him when I said that I am an investor in a company whose patents have been under scrutiny for quite some time.

I spoke from my heart when I told him that I (like many others) am invested in a company that owns what I believe is one of the most important group of patents to ever to come along. I told him that we have been waiting for years while alleged infringers have kept one or more of the patents in limbo at the USPTO. I mentioned that the German patent office recently re-certified these patents and I had high hopes that our very own patent office would do the same.

He said that he was not permitted to speak about specifics as they relate to a particular patent, however, he could speak in general terms. I asked him how many re-exams could there possibly be. His reply was that he knew of no limit. Then he said a better way to answer that question would be to ask "How may claims are there and how important is the patent."

He said that at times the re-exams could be merged to expedite things. The examiners can't anticipate how many re-exams there will be. They have no way of knowing until they are filed.

I told him that obviously the patents are very important or there wouldn't be a steady stream of requests for ex parte re-exams. I thanked him for his time and he apologized for not being permitted to offer more information.

Wish I could have reported more specific news. The patents truly are important and in my opinion worth a helluva lot or so many wouldn't be trying so hard to discredit them.