Related Party Transactions

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2013

Related Party Transactions [Abstract]

Related Party Transaction

12. RELATED-PARTY TRANSACTIONS

We paid approximately $587,000, $906,000, and $784,000, in 2013, 2012, and 2011, respectively, for patent-related legal services to a law firm, of which Robert Sterne, one of our directors since September 2006, is a partner. 

On September 19, 2012 we sold 300,000 shares of our common stock to entities controlled by Messrs. Austin W. Marxe and David M. Greenhouse (“Marxe and Greenhouse Entities”) at a price of $2.30 per share in an offering off our September 2012 Shelf.  On April 18, 2012 we sold 2,857,143 shares of our common stock to Marxe and Greenhouse Entities at a price of $1.05 per share in an offering off our September 2009 Shelf.  Messrs. Marxe and Greenhouse are considered related parties under the rules of NASDAQ as they were beneficial owners of more than 5% of our outstanding stock at the time of the transactions.

On September 14, 2011, we sold 500,000 shares of our common stock to Wellington Management Company, LLP (“Wellington”) at a price of $0.88per share in an offering off our September 2009 Shelf.  On March 30, 2011 we sold 1,200,000 shares of our common stock to Wellington at a price of $0.71 per share in an offering off our September 2009 Shelf.  On November 19, 2010, we sold 2,829,520 shares of our common stock to Wellington at a price of $0.42 per share in an offering off our January 2009 Shelf.  Wellington was considered a related party under the rules of NASDAQ as it was a beneficial owner of more than 5% of our outstanding stock at the time of the transactions.