Friday, August 18, 2006

EchoStar Gets Temporary Reprieve On Tivo DVR Injunction

A ruling to stop the sale of digital video recorders by EchoStar Communications yesterday was temporarily blocked this morning by a Federal Circuit Court of Appeals. Englewood, Colorado-based EchoStar said this morning that the US District Court of the Eastern District of Texas has temporarily blocked the permanent injunction against the company in its patent case against EchoStar. A court yesterday had ordered EchoStar to halt the use and sale of digital video recorders that it said infringed on DVRs from California-based Tivo. Echostar said that it believes the Texas decision was wrong, and that it should be reversed on appeal. The stay is in effect temporarily to decide whether a stay should or should not be in effect for the duration of the appeals process. EchoStar was also ordered to pay $90M to Tivo as part of the Thursday ruling. Tivo first sued EchoStar over its DVR patent in January of 2004.