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March 13, 2007
Runaway Court Order
Sometimes situations can only create certain outcomes. If you drop an egg it is bound to break. When first hearing about this order in the press I was of the opinion that this was a one sided Verizon friendly decision. In truth, having talked with friends and friends of these friends on both sides, I now believe Verizon got the best possible outcome it could. Here is why I believe this.
The judge in the case gave the jury Claim instructions that impacted the outcome.
Talking on deep background, friends shared that the interpretation given to the jury by the judge forced a view point that prior art was not a relevant concern. The lawyers for Verizon dismissed Vonage's expert witnesses as high paid guns, while some of them were respected members of the Internet community that could teach us all about the history of Internet/PSTN gateways. In some cases Verizon's own witnesses explained that the scope of their patent was meant to be applied specifically to a narrower interpretation than was being claimed in the trial.
In an internal document Vonage points out that 4 out of the 7 patents were not applicable according to the jury and willful infringement did not apply at all. Also the request for an immediate injunction was denied by the judge.
On March 23rd the injunction hearing will be held. Whatever that outcome the verdict will be appealed.
If I am understanding the situation correctly, Verizon should not expect better than this in the courts, and may find this a rallying point for legislative attacks.
I have a friend who taught that the history of divestiture started when AT&T ignored President Nixon's wage price freeze and asked for a large tariff increase. President Nixon called the justice department which started the antitrust and the Modified Final Judgement. For AT&T, it was the first rated increase they had asked for in decades. For President Nixon, it was a disregard for his efforts on the public's behalf. If Verizon gets an injunction on Vonage for the 2.5 million Vonage subscribers, how long do you think it will take to restore their phone service (particularly given the horrors of LNP).
In the end this will be about the consumer, hopefully that will be remembered.
Posted by carl at March 13, 2007 02:48 PM