Movie Distribution Patent Featured in Ocean Tomo's Spring 2006 Live Patent Auction

Movie Distribution Patent Featured in Ocean Tomo's Spring 2006 Live Patent Auction

Potential Buyers Include the World's Top Cable and Satellite Providers, Internet Service Providers as Well as Sophisticated Media Investors

CHICAGO, March 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Ocean Tomo, a leading independent merchant banc focusing on intellectual property assets, is hosting the world's first, live multi-lot technology patent auction at The Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco on April 6, 2006. They announced today the inclusion of Patent Lot 30A which pertains to methods and apparatus for distribution of movies for viewing on a consumer's television set.

The lot was accepted as a late entry in the Ocean Tomo Auction due to its exceptional quality and marketability. "I believe the claims within this patent outline the basic foundation for any Video On Demand (VOD) system that is in use today by the world's premier cable and telco operators," says Doug Ballantyne, CEO of Plaxton Developments and inventor of the patents.

The patent details methods and apparatus for the distribution of movies for viewing on a consumer's television set. Digitized compressed signals containing audio and visual components of the movie selected by the consumer are sent to the consumer's receiver. The digital signals are then converted to corresponding electronic signals; which are decompressed and converted to audio and video signals. These converted signals are passed to a conventional television set for viewing by the consumer. The patent has been cited by later patents assigned to top multi-national companies, including Microsoft, IBM, Time Warner Interactive Group Inc., Hitachi, Intel, Lucent Technology and Sony.

Potential buyers for this patent may include the world's top cable and satellite television providers, internet service providers, as well as sophisticated media investors.

For more information on this lot or The Ocean Tomo Spring 2006 Live Patent Auction, please call (312) 377-4851 or email auctions@oceantomo.com . File histories on disk and a feature guide sheet to the claims within the lot are available upon request.

About Ocean Tomo, LLC:

Ocean Tomo, LLC ( http://www.oceantomo.com/ ) is a merchant banc specializing in understanding and leveraging intellectual property assets. The firm, which was established in 2003, provides advice in IP-related mergers and acquisitions, valuation, expert services and IP analytics. Ocean Tomo works closely with IP owners, advisors and investors. The firm has offices in Chicago, San Francisco, Palm Beach, Greenwich, Orange County and Washington, DC. Ocean Tomo Capital, LLC, a $200 million investment fund, and Ocean Tomo PatentRatings, LLC, which focuses on patent analytics, are subsidiaries of Ocean Tomo, LLC.

Source: Ocean Tomo, LLC

CONTACT: Wendy Chou of Ocean Tomo, LLC, +1-718-499-6075, or
wchou@oceantomo.com

Web site: http://www.oceantomo.com/

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