Vonage, the VOIP telephone service, suffered a major setback Friday as a judge said he will sign a permanent injunction restraining the company from using technology needed to connect many of its customers. The case raises the possibility that millions of customers who use Vonage’s service could face phone disruptions. Vonage vowed that won’t happen.
U.S. District Judge Claude Hilton, based in Alexandria, Va., said he will issue a permanent injunction sought by Verizon that would prevent the use of the disputed technology. The judge said he will sign the order in two weeks and set a hearing for April 6 to determine if the order will be delayed while Vonage pursues its appeal in a higher court.
Earlier this month, a jury found Vonage had infringed upon three Verizon patents and ruled Vonage must pay Verizon $58 million and possible future royalties. Verizon sought an injunction because it argued Vonage continues to steal hundreds of thousands of customers from Verizon and Vonage’s precarious financial situation may make it impossible to collect future damages.
Whether a judge will actually sign an order that causes significant phone service disruption is a thorny question, said Paul O’Keefe, a partner with Business Edge Solutions, an East Brunswick, N.J., consultancy.
Read more at the New York Times.
