Dish Network to Pay TiVo $200M

TiVo has long suffered from competitors using the television pause and rewind technology for which TiVo became famous. Now, though, the struggling DVR maker has managed to convince a federal judge that Dish Network and its sister firm, EchoStar, have violated an injunction against copying the technology, forcing the latter two companies to pay a total of $200 million to TiVo.

While Dish Network plans to appeal the case, it will be forced to pay the $110 million in damages, $90 million in sanctions, and additional attorney fees, as well as additional sanctions if it loses its appeal. This ruling comes after Dish Network’s 2004 loss to TiVo in a patent infringement case, a ruling that prompted Dish Network to begin selling modified software to its customers.

Even though it won the case, TiVo had been hoping for $1 billion in settlements for Dish Network’s use of the technology from April 2008 to July 2009. According to Dish Network, the violation of the injunction had been done in good faith, and that Dish Network never meant to cause any harm to TiVo. The company remains confident about its chances at appellate court.

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