Serverside Group Ltd. said July 7 its patent for card customization, which it claims is being infringed upon by dozens of U.S. credit unions and banks, was maintained in an oral hearing by the European Patent Office.
Serverside said the cards patent was opposed by two companies, the Netherlands’ Gemalto NV, which dropped its opposition and invested in Serverside in 2009, and by Dimpledough, one of the defendants in a pending U.S. suit.
The ruling by the European Patent Office comes as Serverside is suing numerous credit unions, credit union card groups and banks over the patent, including PSCU Financial Services, The Members Group, Credit Union 1, Neighbors CU and Anheuser-Busch Employees’ CU, as well as CPI Card Group, HJA Payment Processing Solutions, T8 Webware, Design One Creative, United Solutions Co., American State Bank, Eastern Bank, Bank Iowa and Dimpledough. According to the suit, dozens of other credit unions and banks could be infringing on its patent as well.
Card customization allows credit unions and banks to personalize credit and/or debit cards with a user’s own photo or the logo of their favorite sports team, for example, and is increasingly popular among consumers.
In the United States, Serverside Group filed suit in federal court in Delaware June 23 claiming dozens of credit union groups and banks are infringing on its patents for card customization technology (
