Collateral for a security interest recorded Jan 31, 2023 (Bank of America, N.A.).
Term ended Mar 1, 2025 · High confidence
20-year base term ended Jul 26, 2022
Held by The Nielsen Company (US), LLC
Filed Jul 26, 2002 as application 10/205,810 · Granted Dec 1, 2009
Base term plus 949 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay)
Today
Term ended Mar 1, 2025
2002
2026
Clock starts
Jul 26, 2002
Jul 26, 2002
Term ended
Mar 1, 2025
Mar 1, 2025
Granted
Dec 1, 2009
Dec 1, 2009
base term
patent term adjustment
after the term ends
fee events
Updated Nov 15, 2026 · includes USPTO assignment & status data published Nov 15, 2026 and grant & fee data published Nov 10, 2026 (weekly) · how we know
949
Days of term adjustment
Read from the USPTO patent term adjustment record, not recalculated here.
None
Terminal disclaimer
No disclaimer on this record.
3 of 3
Maintenance fees paid
Three maintenance fees fall due, at 3.5, 7.5 and 11.5 years from grant. This counts the ones the record shows paid.
47
Family applications on record here
Applications sharing this one's continuity chain whose file history this site holds. The family may have others.
This patent's term runs 949 days past its 20-year base term on prosecution delay. All three maintenance fees were paid, so no fee lapse ended it. Confidence: High. from the record
How we calculated this date
One row per rule, each showing its own input and what it did to the date. A step we could not verify says so instead of resolving itself.
| Step | Input | Date after this step | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base term, 20 years from filing | Clock starts Jul 26, 2002, when this application, 10/205,810, was filed | Jul 26, 2022 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | Every parent in the chain resolved | no change | High confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | +949 days, USPTO patent term adjustment record | Mar 1, 2025 | High confidence |
| Terminal disclaimer cap | None on record | no cap applied | High confidence |
| Patent term extension | None on file | no change | High confidence |
| Fee events | 3 of 3 maintenance fees paid | term ended | High confidence |
| Computed term end | The steps above, in order | Mar 1, 2025 | High confidence |
This family
| Application 10/095,791 | Abandoned not computed | not computed |
| US 6,996,237 | Term ended Mar 2014 | Mar 2014 |
| US 7,239,981 | Term ended Sep 2023 | Sep 2023 |
| US 7,627,872 | this patent Mar 2025 | Mar 2025 |
| US 7,222,071 | Term ended Aug 2023 | Aug 2023 |
| US 6,845,360 | Term ended Sep 2023 | Sep 2023 |
| US 7,174,151 | Term ended Jan 2024 | Jan 2024 |
| US 7,483,835 | Term ended Nov 2024 | Nov 2024 |
8 of 47 applications in this family shown, earliest filings first. The applications whose file history this site holds. The family may have others.
Assignments
Assignment documents as recorded at the USPTO, oldest first, with the reel and frame each was recorded at. A recorded assignment is a filed document, not a statement of current ownership, and the absence of a later one is not evidence that the last one still stands.
| Recorded | Assignor | Assignee | Conveyance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 26, 2002 Reel 13145, frame 286 | Hebeler, John W.; Kunchakarra, Prasad V.; Dietz, Thomas L. Iii | Arbitron Inc. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Mar 28, 2014 Reel 32554, frame 759 | Arbitron Inc. | Nielsen Audio, Inc. | Change of Name |
| Mar 28, 2014 Reel 32554, frame 765 | Arbitron Inc. | Nielsen Holdings N.V. | Merger |
| Mar 28, 2014 Reel 32554, frame 801 | Nielsen Audio, Inc. | The Nielsen Company (US), LLC | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Nov 30, 2015 Reel 37172, frame 415 | The Nielsen Company ((US), LLC | Citibank, N.A., as Collateral Agent for the First Lien Secured Parties | Supplemental IP Security Agreement |
| Jun 9, 2020 Reel 53473, frame 1 | A. C. Nielsen Company, LLC; Acn Holdings Inc.; Acnielsen Corporation; Acnielsen Eratings.com; Affinnova, Inc.; Art Holding, L.l.c.; Athenian Leasing Corporation; CZT/Acn Trademarks, L.L.C.; Exelate, Inc.; Gracenote, Inc.; Gracenote Digital Ventures, LLC; Gracenote Media Services, LLC; Netratings, LLC; Nielsen Audio, Inc.; Nielsen Consumer Insights, Inc.; Nielsen Consumer Neuroscience, Inc.; Nielsen Finance Co.; Nielsen Finance LLC; Nielsen International Holdings, Inc.; Nielsen Mobile, LLC; Nielsen UK Finance I, LLC; NMR Investing I, Inc.; TCG Divestiture Inc.; TNC (US) Holdings, Inc.; The Nielsen Company (US), LLC; Vizu Corporation; Vnu Marketing Information, Inc.; Nmr Licensing Associates, L.p.; Nielsen Holding and Finance B.V.; The Nielsen Company B.V.; Vnu International B.V. | Citibank, N.a. | Supplemental Security Agreement |
| Oct 7, 2020 Reel 54066, frame 64 | A.C. Nielsen (Argentina) S.A.; A.C. Nielsen Company, LLC; Acn Holdings Inc.; Acnielsen Corporation; Acnielsen Eratings.com; Affinnova, Inc.; Art Holding, L.l.c.; Athenian Leasing Corporation; CZT/Acn Trademarks, L.L.C.; Exelate, Inc.; Gracenote, Inc.; Gracenote Digital Ventures, LLC; Gracenote Media Services, LLC; Netratings, LLC; Nielsen Audio, Inc.; Nielsen Consumer Insights, Inc.; Nielsen Consumer Neuroscience, Inc.; Nielsen Finance Co.; Nielsen Finance LLC; Nielsen International Holdings, Inc.; Nielsen Mobile, LLC; NMR Investing I, Inc.; TCG Divestiture Inc.; TNC (US) Holdings, Inc.; The Nielsen Company (US), LLC; Vizu Corporation; Vnu Marketing Information, Inc.; Nmr Licensing Associates, L.p.; Nielsen Holding and Finance B.V.; The Nielsen Company B.V.; Vnu International B.V. | Citibank, N.a | Corrective Assignment to Correct the Patents Listed on Schedule 1 Recorded on 6-9-2020 Previously Recorded on Reel 053473 Frame 0001. Assignor(S) Hereby Confirms the Supplemental IP Security Agreement. |
| Oct 13, 2022 Reel 61750, frame 221 | Citibank, N.a. | The Nielsen Company (US), LLC | Release (REEL 037172 / Frame 0415) |
| Jan 31, 2023 Reel 63560, frame 547 | Gracenote Digital Ventures, LLC; Gracenote Media Services, LLC; Gracenote, Inc.; TNC (US) Holdings, Inc.; The Nielsen Company (US), LLC | Bank Of America, N.a. | Security Agreement |
| Apr 28, 2023 Reel 63561, frame 381 | Gracenote Digital Ventures, LLC; Gracenote Media Services, LLC; Gracenote, Inc.; TNC (US) Holdings, Inc.; The Nielsen Company (US), LLC | Citibank, N.a. | Security Interest |
| May 8, 2023 Reel 63574, frame 632 | Gracenote Digital Ventures, LLC; Gracenote Media Services, LLC; Gracenote, Inc.; TNC (US) Holdings, Inc.; The Nielsen Company (US), LLC | Ares Capital Corporation | Security Interest |
| May 11, 2023 Reel 63603, frame 1 | Citibank, N.a. | A. C. Nielsen Company, LLC; Exelate, Inc.; Gracenote, Inc.; Gracenote Media Services, LLC; The Nielsen Company (US), LLC; Netratings, LLC | Release (REEL 053473 / Frame 0001) |
| May 11, 2023 Reel 63605, frame 1 | Citibank, N.a. | A. C. Nielsen Company, LLC; Exelate, Inc.; Gracenote, Inc.; Gracenote Media Services, LLC; The Nielsen Company (US), LLC; Netratings, LLC | Release (REEL 054066 / Frame 0064) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | A. C. Nielsen Company, LLC | Release (REEL 053473 / Frame 0001) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | Exelate, Inc. | Release (REEL 053473 / Frame 0001) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | Gracenote, Inc. | Release (REEL 053473 / Frame 0001) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | Gracenote Media Services, LLC | Release (REEL 053473 / Frame 0001) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | The Nielsen Company (US), LLC | Release (REEL 053473 / Frame 0001) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | Netratings, LLC | Release (REEL 053473 / Frame 0001) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | A. C. Nielsen Company, LLC | Release (REEL 054066 / Frame 0064) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | Exelate, Inc. | Release (REEL 054066 / Frame 0064) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | Gracenote, Inc. | Release (REEL 054066 / Frame 0064) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | Gracenote Media Services, LLC | Release (REEL 054066 / Frame 0064) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | The Nielsen Company (US), LLC | Release (REEL 054066 / Frame 0064) |
| May 11, 2023 reel/frame not recorded | Citibank, N.a. | Netratings, LLC | Release (REEL 054066 / Frame 0064) |
Sources
Google Patents · The patent document at USPTO · Assignment records at USPTO
USPTO account required: This application in Patent Center · USPTO's maintenance fee lookup
Maintenance fee events come from USPTO's own fee records. Its fee lookup asks for the patent number and the application number.
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Alerts on its grants, lapses and transfers.
What's changing
Note
The 949 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay) are read from the USPTO record, not recalculated by us
Citations
361
later US patents cite this one
That is top 1% of utility patents granted in 2009 in our data, the only group it is compared against.
How we rank
Every date shows its work: the base term, any term adjustment or extension, any disclaimer cap, and the maintenance fee record, each with a confidence tier. How this record was built
Computed patent terms end on the dates shown. Related patents and pending applications may cover overlapping subject matter.