Internet Consulting Consultants

Argent Media™ is a full-service Search Engine Marketing Agency that offers website optimization, search engine marketing strategies, and online reputation management. Founded by Chris Silver Smith and based in Dallas-Fort Worth, Argent Media has been provided high-quality, custom services to large and small companies, both domestic and international. 

Argent Media offers a broad range of bespoke web marketing services including:

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Local Search Optimization Image SEO and Video SEO

Social Media Management Online Reputation Management SEO Expert Witness Consulting

Chris Silver Smith, the President and CEO of Argent Media™, has an extensive background in search engine optimization and online marketing. He has worked for some of the top agencies in the SEO industry, researching and developing search optimization and providing search marketing strategies for Fortune 500 and Internet Retailer 500 companies. 

Mr. Smith worked at Verizon/Idearc for over ten years, serving as the Head of Technology & Advanced Development for their Superpages.com sites. His projects there included R&D, local search development, user interface design, map-based search, mobile applications, and more. He was awarded the Verizon Individual Excellence Award in 2004 for his innovations, which increased site traffic (and click-through revenues) for the company. 

In 2006, Mr. Smith founded and chaired the Idearc SEO Council, which brought together individuals from across the company to focus on natural search optimization. 

Mr. Smith currently has five patents pending. His work has been featured in several publications, and he regularly contributes articles to Natural Search Blog, Nodal Bits, and Search Engine Land (which is the leading online publication dealing with paid and natural search marketing). Mr. Smith is a regular speaker at a number of technology and marketing conferences, and he also previously served on the Board of Advisors for Thomas-Reuters FindLaw's SEO Advisory Board, and on the Board of Advisors for Universal Business Listing (UBL).

View Chris Silver Smith's Expert Witness Profile.

Ricardo Bernardino specializes in Cloud Cost Optimization, by rightsizing computing services, data retention policies, and weekend shutdowns of the non-production environments.

Experience: Mr. Bernardino been an IT consultant for 18 years, 10 in Software Development Lifecycle and 8 in DevOps. He is currently a DevOps Lead, Release & Deployment Manager, and Security Officer, managing a multi-cloud infrastructure for a SaaS company.

In the last 6 years, he has pursued cloud efficiency culminating in dramatic cost reductions and enhanced system stability. Implementing strategic initiatives, like right-sizing computing services, revising data retention policies, and selective shutdowns, has significantly reduced cloud consumption, without compromising operational excellence.

Business Consultant Services - As a freelance consultant, Mr. Bernardino takes part in research studies, usability tests, and interviews through leading research platforms such as Respondent, User Research International, User Interviews, Enterprise Technology Research, Gerson Lehrman Group, or Coleman Research Group. He shares his experiences, perspectives, and feedback directly with companies, shaping new products, services, and user experiences, but also learning about emerging trends and products.

Mr. Bernardino improves processes using tools like Jenkins, Terraform, and Ansible, accomplished zero-downtime deployments, slashed the release process duration from hours to minutes, and virtually eliminated planned and unplanned downtime.

Education/Training: BA in Computer Science, from Instituto Superior Técnico, graduated in January 2013. Student in an Information Systems Master's Degree, from Instituto Superior Técnico, from 2008 to 2013.

Degree / Certifications - AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate - ITIL® V3 Foundation - Oracle Cloud Infrastructure 2023 Architect Associate - ISTQB Foundation Level

Nevium specializes in managing and increasing the value of intellectual property portfolios. You have your business plan; you have your marketing plan…Where is your IP plan? Quite surprisingly, most businesses don’t have an IP plan; nonetheless even know the total contents of their IP portfolio. At Nevium, we manage and monetize intellectual property and intangible assets. We believe these assets need to be identified, organized and managed in order to maximize value.

Nevium specializes in valuing, managing, monetizing and providing expert testimony related to intellectual property. Nevium values IP for business transactions, tax/estate, joint venture negotiations, transfer pricing and bankruptcy.

Nevium builds and manages intellectual asset management strategies for clients who want to monetize their IP. Mr. Bania and Mr. Buss are frequent lecturers on IP valuation and licensing issues and publish articles for numerous industry publications. Areas of expertise include music, apparel, publishing, film, food, automotive, sporting goods, furnishings, advertising, media, photography, retail and not-for-profit.

Consulting Services Include:

• IP Management - Nevium Identifies, organizes and values IP and IA
• IP Valuation - Nevium values brands, trademarks, copyrights, patents social media and Internet assets for M&A, estate, business transactions, tax and transfer pricing
• IP Monetization - Nevium assists with setting royalty rates, building licensing agreements and buying and selling IP

Doug Bania, CLP, Founding Principal, has over a decade of expertise in managing, valuing and monetizing intellectual property. Prior to founding Nevium, Mr. Bania managed 100s of projects related to brands, intellectual property and related intangible assets. He has assisted clients in intellectual property matters related to acquisitions, litigation, bankruptcy, tax, estate, family and marital disputes, and licensing. Mr. Bania delivers presentations and seminars on IP valuation, management, and damages issues for various business and legal entities across the United States.

San Diego Office 415 Laurel Street, Suite 341 San Diego, CA 92101 Telephone: 858-255-4361 Email: info@nevium.com

Los Angeles Office 9107 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 450 Beverly Hills, CA 90210 Telephone: 310-975-3145 Email: info@nevium.com

View Nevium's Expert Witness Profile.

Security Diligence, LLC provides consulting and advisory services in Information Security, Privacy and Risk Management with key practice areas in Cybersecurity and Third Party Risk. Their extensive experience provides a practical approach to assessing risk, identifying areas for program improvement and developing strategies and implementation approaches that provide measured results.

Security Consulting Services:

Information Security  - Security Diligence brings business-driven strategy to the development and implementation of Information Security Programs. With industry-recognized practices, they assess existing program effectiveness and develop strategies for today's complex information and cyber security landscape.

Privacy and Data Protection - Security Diligence can provide a number of key services for Privacy and Data Protection that include program governance, Privacy by Design guidance, impact analysis, due diligence compliance reviews and information protection strategy and assessment.

Enterprise Risk Management - Security Diligence can provide risk management services for key focus areas including security assessments and analysis, counterparty security due diligence, cyber security framework alignment, cloud readiness, and third party oversight strategies.

Third Party Vendor Risk  - Security Diligence has extensive experience in third party vendor risk. As a key risk area today, they provide comprehensive services in program development and implementation. They can also provide third party due diligence security reviews and onsite assessment services.

Founder and CEO, Shawn H. Malone, is an award winning Information Security and Cyber Risk Expert.  He has over 35 years of experience delivering Cybersecurity Solutions and Third-Party Risk Management Programs to the financial services, insurance, consulting / advisory, and defense industries.  

Mr. Malone has degrees in Electrical Engineering Technology and Network Security.  He co-developed industry leading Third Party Risk Management professional certification. He is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Certified Third Party Risk Professional (CTPRP) and Certified Third-Party Risk Assessor (CTPRA).  He has served as a keynote speaker and provides training services in his areas of expertise including Information Security, Cyber Risk, and Third Party Risk Assessment.

View Shawn H. Malone's Expert Witness Profile.

Setec Investigations offers unparalleled expertise in computer forensics and electronic discovery, providing highly personalized, case-specific forensic analysis and litigation support services to assist in the investigation, handling, and prosecution of computer-related crimes or misuse.

Setec Investigations combines today's most advanced computer forensics and litigation support expertise with a business- and legal-friendly approach, resulting in a sound analytical foundation that carefully balances critical investigative requirements with vital legal and evidentiary needs.

Setec Investigations incorporates a cross-disciplinary team comprised of computer forensic investigators, attorneys, law enforcement specialists, and seasoned business professionals who have established a proven track record of success since 1997.

Services Overview

Setec Investigations possesses the necessary combination of technical expertise, understanding of the legal system, and specialized tools and processes enabling the discovery, collection, investigation, and production of electronic information for investigating and handling computer-related crimes or misuse.

Explore our range of service offerings:

Computer Forensic Investigations

Computer forensics and enterprise investigation services identify, gather, analyze, and preserve electronic evidence to establish a sustainable posture for internal or legal action.

Electronic Discovery

Manage large volumes of electronic data and quickly identify and isolate electronic evidence that is critical to the success of a litigation.

Litigation Support

Legal consultants and attorneys translate litigation issues into strong case strategies that effectively utilize electronic evidence.

Expert Witness

Supports the resolution of security incidents and active litigations by offering impartial and independent expert testimony, opinions, and customized reports in legal proceedings.

Dr. Tal Lavian holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from UC Berkeley, specializing in network communications. 35+ years as a scientist, educator, and technologist; nearly 20 years researching, studying, and lecturing at UC Berkeley; Industry Fellow and Lecturer at UC Berkeley's College of Engineering.   90+ cases · 60+ depositions · 8+ trial testimonies · 100+ patents supported in IP litigation · 120+ patents as inventor · 60+ pro-se prosecuted · 25+ peer-reviewed publications 

Areas of Expertise:

Telecommunications  - Computer Networks - Network Communications - Internet Protocols (TCP/IP) - VoIP - Streaming Media - Mobile Wireless: Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11), Bluetooth (IEEE 802.15), cellular, routing and switching (MPLS, BGP, OSPF), network security, streaming media, and network management (SNMP) expert witness. 

• Network Communications: TCP/IP suite, TCP, UDP, IP, Ethernet (IEEE 802.3), SNMP, packet switching, network architecture
• Mobile Wireless: Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11), Bluetooth (IEEE 802.15), Wireless LAN (WLAN), cellular systems, SMS, mobile devices
• Internet/Cloud: HTTP, web applications, cloud computing, distributed computing
• Routing/Switching: LAN, WAN, VPN, VLAN, LAG, ARP, DHCP, DNS, quality of service (QoS).
• Network Protocols: IPv4, IPv6, RIP, BGP, MPLS, OSPF, multicast
• VoIP/Streaming Media: SIP, RTP, H.323, PSTN, circuit switching, SS7, WebRTC, video/audio conferencing.
• Network Security: Firewalls, VPN, IPSec, SSL/TLS, deep packet inspection, L4-7 switching, NAC
• Network Management: NMS, SNMP, device management, OSS, alarm systems
• Communication Standards: IEEE, IETF, ITU, ISO

Case Experience:

Dr. Lavian has served as an expert in over 90 patent cases involving more than 100 patents. He has provided reports and testimony in U.S. federal district courts, state courts, the USPTO PTAB (IPR, CBM, PGR, ex parte reexamination, interference), the ITC, and international courts. Cases have involved Apple, Google, Facebook (Meta), Microsoft, Amazon, Tesla, Cisco, Juniper Networks, Arista Networks, Ericsson, T-Mobile, Samsung, LinkedIn, Huawei, Netflix, Broadcom, SAP, and others. 

While at UC Berkeley, Dr. Lavian conducted research projects in data centers (RAD Labs), network communication service architecture (SAHARA), and wireless systems (ICEBERG); he also served as an industry fellow and lecturer at the Sutardja Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology (SCET) and as a scientific liaison between Nortel Research Lab and UC Berkeley. Dr. Lavian was also part of UC Berkeley's SkyDeck start-ups, where he worked on technology research and implementation. 

Credentials:

• Inventor of over 120 U.S. patents; over 60 prosecuted pro se
• 20 years at UC Berkeley - 10+ years at Nortel Research. 
• Over 25 peer-reviewed publications in IEEE and ACM
• Principal Investigator on three DARPA projects
• IEEE Senior Member
• Nortel Networks Principal Scientist

About Dr. Lavian

Dr. Lavian's Website

Dr. Lavian's Expertise