Vonage Loses Appeal; Verizon Owed $120 Million 160
Billosaur writes "Things do not look good for Vonage. Yesterday, they lost their request for reconsideration of their settlement with Verizon. This means Vonage owes Verizon $120 million to end the patent lawsuit filed against them. The costs associated with defending the case have cut into Vonage's bottom line, and despite attempts to cut costs by laying off 10% of their workforce, they may be unable to make a payment against their debt come December. According to the settlement, Vonage will pay $117.5 million to Verizon and another $2.5 million dollars to charity. Vonage's shares have dropped 87% since their IPO, now hovering around $1.50 per share."
Everyone? (Score:2, Insightful)
I am sure they would disagree that it needs to end.
And they have a much louder voice than you.
When are patent portfolios restraint of trade? (Score:5, Insightful)
All that's left are a handful of tiny regionals, and Verizon, AT&T, and QWest. MCI is dead and gone... and buying up patents (or even 'cleanly' filing them) means that these companies can effectively shutout the competition.
Not good.
competition (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:When are patent portfolios restraint of trade? (Score:2, Insightful)
Kick a Verizon representative when you get a chance.
Re:Vonage Stockholders? (Score:4, Insightful)
Now, if we are going to say that Verizon ISP is not profitable on it's own, and requires the high margin POTS lines to subsidize it, then we have a classic anti-trust case where a monopoly is using it's monopoly position to control a different industry.
Re:Always (Score:3, Insightful)
I also understand monopolies, and the Sherman Anti-trust Act, The 1996 TCA Act, and other legislation.
What I'm alluding to is that if a sufficient number of patent protections amounts to monopolization of an industry-- once a former public trust-- then there's some thing wrong here.
Vonage is a victim, just as many technology companies are victims, of the patent process. Vonage had a chance,but doesn't now. Yesterday on
Re:Question (Score:4, Insightful)
In one scenario, somebody else gets your job, in the other nobody gets your job.
Re:I've Got Their Number (Score:4, Insightful)
So what? Who cares? What the hell is the difference? Verizon had no problem porting some numbers to my preferred provider, nor did some other telcos, like Sprint, from whom I first got the number. Vonage had a problem.
So what does your buzzword complaint have to do with anything? This is a question merely of whether Vonage will let me port a number, the way other telcos do, the way LNP is supposed to work. If anything, you should throw your buzzwords at Vonage, instead of acting like you're some kind of bigshot. All it does is make you look like you don't understand LNP.
Re:I've Got Their Number (Score:2, Insightful)