For four years, Valve Corporation has faced an ongoing slew of patent lawsuits from Leigh Rothschild and his associated companies. The Patent Professor attempted to enforce patent US8856221B2, stating that Steam is a “system and method for storing broadcast content in a cloud-based computing environment.” What appeared to be a losing battle for Valve became one of the greatest turnabouts in history.
Valve Got an RBDS License, But Faced Rothschild’s Wrath
How exactly did Gabe Newell’s Valve become embroiled in a series of patent infringement cases? Back in 2011, Rothschild claimed rights to the Rothschild Broadcasting Distribution System (RBDS). The RBDS primarily targeted online services that provided cloud-based products, including streaming entertainment and digital game software.
Valve purchased coverage in 2016 that’s described as “a perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, fully paid-up, worldwide license.” The corporation later faced infringement from the license charges, according to Display Technologies LLC in 2022, then another in 2023 for patent US8856221B2. Valve’s legal team filed a lawsuit against Rothschild after receiving numerous requests to comply with other patents from its associated partners.
On Jan. 30, 2024, Valve sent a Second Amended Complaint for US8856221B2. The legal team recognized its invalidity for enforcement against Steam’s business practices. The court proceedings revealed that Rothschild’s entities were created as patent trolls. A patent troll is a shell company that claims to own patent rights and uses litigation to profit from others.
The Western District Court of Washington found in favor of Gabe Newell’s legal team on Feb. 17, 2026. Rothschild is charged with violating the Patent Troll Prevention and Consumer Protections Act. The lawsuit identified his actions against Valve as bad-faith enforcement. Newell’s corporation was awarded $137,364 for both cases.
The Future of Video Game Patent Cases After Rothschild?
Leigh Rothschild has become an example of what an individual does to seek financial gain through a series of lawsuits. You may have seen a similar lawsuit by Nintendo against Pocketpair’s Palworld. Since late 2024, the indie studio faced numerous copyright claims by the Big N.
Nintendo faces criticism for the “Summoning Monster for Battle” patent before Pokémon Legends Z-A’s release. Gamers believed this patent was too broad because there are multiple franchises that have this mechanic, such as Digimon, Final Fantasy, and even Elden Ring’s Spirit Calling Bell. As the lawsuit continues, Pocketpair has decided to march on during the controversy. The developers patched out Pal summoning from the Pal Spheres in version 0.3.11 on May 8, 2025.
On Nov. 3, the US Patent and Trademark Office director, John A. Squires, called for the patent to be re-examined. He wrote in the order that the office failed to compare it to a previous trademark: “In view of this, substantial new questions of patentability have arisen. I hereby order reexamination of the ‘397 (“Summoning Monster”) patent under 35 USC 304 and 37 CFR.” The investigation is ongoing as both companies continue to operate.
The video game industry is facing more copyright infringement cases as of late. Many of them claim to be original ideas. The reality is that they are innovations that became patented after the fact. Recently, Sony won a lawsuit against Genuine Enabling Technology, which had tried to sue over its Bluetooth synchronization for PlayStation 3 and 4 controllers. The US Court of Appeals of the Federal Circuit said that GET failed to identify what the term ‘encoding means in patent US61218730.
These cases are proof that people and businesses will use the law in any way for personal gain. Nintendo’s US Patent ‘397 shows they are determined to crush their competitors. It resulted in a careless mistake at the US Patent Office and a majority of the Pokémon community separating from their associated products. GET is a shell company that tried to make quick cash through litigation. And now, Rothschild, the Patent Professor himself, will forever be scrutinized for bombarding Valve with baseless trademarks.
