Dish Network Takes TiVo Battle to Supreme Court

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Dish Network Takes TiVo Battle to Supreme Court
The satcaster claims patent defeat will not jeopardize current users.
By Swanni

Washington, D.C. (April 12, 2008) -- Dish Network said late yesterday that it will appeal a DVR patent ruling favoring TiVo to the U.S. Supreme Court.

A federal appeals court yesterday rejected Dish's request to reconsider a ruling that supported TiVo in its patent suit against the satcaster.

TiVo sued the satcaster in 2004, saying it violated its 'Time Warp' patent for a DVR software feature which is used for both SD and HDTV programming.

The Time Warp feature allows "the user to store selected television broadcast programs while the user is simultaneously watching or reviewing another program," according to TiVo's patent which was filed for almost 10 years ago.

A Texas jury decided in favor of TiVo in April 2006, awarding the company $73.9 million in damages. The appeals court upheld that verdict in January and Dish last month asked the appeals court to reconsider.

If the ruling is upheld, Dish may owe TiVo as much as $100 million in damages, including interest. In addition, the satcaster could be forced to disable its four million DVRs, although it claims that a software upgrade has removed the feature found in violation.

In its statement yesterday saying it will appeal to the Supreme Court, Dish reiterated that the appeals court ruling would not impact its current DVR users

For TiVo, a favorable outcome could give the company leverage in negotiating future DVR licensing deals with cable and satellite operators. The DVR company yesterday said it was "extremely pleased" with the appeals court ruling.

Also see:
Dish Network's HD Satellite: Total Failure

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Swanni (Phillip Swann) is president and publisher of TVPredictions.com. He has been quoted in dozens of publications and broadcast outlets, including CNN, Fox News, Inside Edition, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, The Financial Times, The Associated Press and The Hollywood Reporter. He can be reached at swann@tvpredictions.com or at 703-505-3064.

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