DirecTV Pays Finisar $25M More
By Multi Channel News Staff -- Multichannel News, 7/7/2006 10:24:00 AM MT
Finisar received $25 million in additional post-verdict damages from a Texas federal court related to a patent-infringement case against DirecTV, AP reported.
The provider of fiber-optic systems for high-speed-data networks was initially awarded $78.9 million in June after a Beaumont, Texas, jury found that DirecTV and its affiliated companies directly and willfully infringed on Finisar's information-transmission patent.
The patent in question addresses unique ways to transmit and broadcast digital information to a wide base of subscribers.
AP reported that the court decided to give Finisar the additional $25 million "due to DirecTV's willingful infringement," and it granted Finisar prejudgment interest on the jury's verdict at 6% compounded annually since April 4, 1999, or about $12 million.
The court also denied an injunction but ordered DirecTV to pay a compulsory ongoing license fee to Finisar at the rate of $1.60 per set-top box throughout the duration of the patent, which expires in April 2012, according to AP. DirecTV said 2006 sales of new set-tops totaled about 15 million units, AP reported.
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