ActiveVideo Networks announced it had been awarded damages totaling $115 million in the jury trial of the company’s patent infringement suit against Verizon Communications, following three weeks of proceedings. Additionally, Activision stated its intention to file an injunction against Verizon to prevent any further use of the technology related technology.
A jury in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia found that Verizon had infringed on all asserted claims of the intellectual property owned by ActiveVideo during the deployment of Verizon’s FiOS television service.
Verizon quickly issued a statement. “Verizon disagrees with the verdict and is confident that the court of appeals will agree,” it said. “The company will not be paying any damages while the appeal is under way.”
ActiveVideo filed suit against Verizon in May 2010, alleging that the Verizon FiOS system infringed on four patents for technology created, owned and used by ActiveVideo. By ruling in its favor, the decision upholds ActiveVideo’s rights as the inventor of the technology in question, which is used in the delivery of television applications like video-on-demand and interactive TV.
“We’re extremely pleased that the judge found that ActiveVideo intellectual property was valid and that the jury found that Verizon infringed on all asserted claims,” said Jeff Miller, president and CEO of ActiveVideo Networks. “We are seeking immediate payment of the damages that have been awarded by the court.”
The ActiveVideo CloudTV platform is currently deployed with major cable system operators, including Cablevision. It offers solutions for video-on-demand navigation, interactive games, and many other interactive services.
Miller said the verdict provides further support for Cablevision in its defense against Verizon’s injunction claims within the U.S. International Trade Commission.
ActiveVideo was represented by Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP, the same legal team that will be filing the injunction against Verizon, in ActiveVideo Networks Inc. v. Verizon Communications Inc., 10cv248, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia (Norfolk).
Related Links:
ActiveVideo’s release – http://tinyurl.com/3ueb2h8
