Dickson Supply Co., a $5 million plumbing-heating wholesaler in central New Jersey, is among 11 non-related businesses named in a federal lawsuit charging patent infringement due to their e-commerce activities. The patents held by San Diego-based Pangea Intellectual Properties L.L.C. (PanIP) consist of broad descriptions of how Internet transactions take place, and could apply to literally millions of other online sellers, including other PHCP wholesalers along with e-commerce giants such as Amazon.com and eBay. Why PanIP chose Dickson and other small firms as the initial targets of litigation is central to their defense.
Owner Allan Dickson charges that PanIP selected his firm and other small businesses around the country, ranging from a furniture store to a ski shop to a video store, after hiring a consulting firm and using Dun & Bradstreet credit information to identify what Dickson termed "low-hanging fruit."