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BJ’s Wholesale says judge should toss Walmart lawsuit over self-checkout app

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Warehouse club BJ’s WholesaleI am asking a federal judge for a dismissal of a patent lawsuit that was filed by WalmartThe retail giant claims it’s trying to defend a self-checkout application that is based on technology retailers have been using for more than 10 years.

“Nothing about Sam’s Club’s Scan & Go processes is inventive or unconventional; indeed, many other retailers provide a self-checkout option to their customers,” the company said in the court filing Friday. The company stated that simply adding Bluetooth and a smartphone to a product does not automatically make it patent-eligible.

Walmart’s Sam’s Club is suing BJ’s and Sam’s Club over the technology. This piece of tech has been a valuable differentiator for Sam’s Club as it has seen its membership grow and foot traffic increase. Scan & Go starred in a Super Bowl ad that featured comedian Kevin Hart. This is a perk subscribers receive when they sign up for Walmart+. It’s the company’s membership program. Amazon Prime.

Scan & Go allows customers to ring up purchases on their smartphones while walking through the store, allowing them to avoid a checkout line. This feature was introduced in 2016. It gained popularity because shoppers wanted contactless options to pay during Covid’s expansion.

Walmart sued BJ’s last month, alleging that the competitor had stolen technology from Scan & Go by rolling out a nearly identical app in late 2021.

“Express Pay is an apparent copy of Sam’s Club’s Scan & Go, merely changing the in-app colors and changing the name from Scan & Go to Express Pay,” it said in the complaint in March.

Walmart also claimed that BJ’s infringed on its patents, causing irreparable damage and “significant damages”.

Walmart has not yet responded to my request for comment regarding BJ’s court filing.

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