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Applications Featured Articles
December 31, 2007
Vonage to Pay AT&T $39M to Settle Patent Suit
By Anshu Shrivastava TMCnet Contributing Editor
Vonage has announced that it has reached a definitive agreement settling AT&T's (News - Alert) patent lawsuit, under which Vonage will pay the U.S. telecom giant $39 million over five years.
According to a Reuters report, Vonage said the five-year deal means it must make an upfront payment of $1.95 million to AT&T in January 2008 and then pay $650,000 per month over the life of the multiyear contract. The $1.95 million is pre-payment on the last three months of the deal. In addition, Vonage (News - Alert) said AT&T has granted it non-exclusive rights to AT&T patents related to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP  ) and dual-mode wireless services. However, the agreement does not grant Vonage any rights or license to operate a wireless network to provide any wireless service.In December, both the companies had entered into a definitive agreement to settle their patent dispute. Both Vonage and AT&T had agreed in principle to a settlement on November 7. In October, AT&T had sued Vonage alleging that the company infringed on U.S. Patent No. 6,487,200, titled “Packet Telephone System.” The system allows voice conversations to be carried over the Internet. Since going public in May 2006, Vonage has been facing a series of patent suits. Earlier this year, it settled a suit with Sprint Nextel (News - Alert) for up to $120 million, and also has settled another suit with Verizon Communications Inc in October, reportedly for $80 million. This month, Nortel (News - Alert) Networks Corp., the Canadian maker of telecom equipment, filed a lawsuit against Vonage, alleging that it violated nine patents related to Internet phone services and related features such as 911 and 411 calling and click to call. Anshu Shrivastava is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To see more of her articles, please visit her columnist page. Don’t forget to check out TMCnet’s White Paper Library, which provides a selection of in-depth information on relevant topics affecting the IP Communications industry. The library offers whitepapers, case studies and other documents which are free to registered users. Today’s featured white paper is Achieving a Successful IP Telephony Transition. |
