EchoStar to go for round 2 with TiVo

If you though TiVo and EchoStar were judged, settled, and ready to go their separate ways, think again. The $74 million windfall TiVo just got from their patent infringement suit against EchoStar is about to get all RIM / NTP on us. EchoStar filed a request late last year with the USPTO to reexamine TiVo's famous 1998 TiVo-secret-sauce patent (otherwise known as patent #6233389 for a "multimedia time warping system") -- almost two years into the case, not before -- and apparently they're now pressuring the judge presiding to stay judgment until word comes back from the patent office. Being that TiVo won the trial by jury and the judge has yet to hand down the final verdict, EchoStar can continue pressuring to stay the case until the patent has been reviewed, and accepted or rejected as novel / un-novel, then undoubtedly re-petitioned continuously by one party or the other until the system breaks down and someone -- like the judge -- gives up on the process. Will TiVo's judge be as harsh and unforgiving as James Spencer was with RIM in their battle with NTP? That's yet to be seen, but in a release on the judgment, EchoStar called the jury's verdict "the first step in a very long process" and expressed their belief that "the decision will be reversed either through post-trial motions or on appeal." In other words this has the makings of yet another patent-suit fiasco, and frankly we'd like none of it.

[Thanks, Ryan]

[jalapeno @ Apr 27th 2006 11:43AM]

I so sick of these cases...if engadget never covered another patent suit case I would not complain.

[Robert Aitchison @ Apr 27th 2006 12:03PM]

I think a whole lot depends on how the judge responds to Echostar's initial motions to stay, unless the judge readly grants the stay there will be a big incentive for Echostar to settle rather than continuing to fight it.

In the RIM-NTP battle RIM had a near guarantee that the patents NTP held would be invalidated as the USPTO pretty much said that was what was going to happen. RIM tried to drag proceedings out until the patents were invalidated but the judge, even with a fair amount of political pressure wasn't having it. In the end RIM ended up settling even though everyone involved knew the NTP patents were going to be invalidated because they were facing a shutdown.

IMNSHO (and IANAL) the TiVo patents are a lot more likely to be upheld so unless the judge is sympathetic to Echostar's point of view they will end up spinning their legal wheels with a fairly small chance of success.

Now TiVo is WAY WAY WAY less likely to seek an injunction against Echostar that would affect existing customers, unlike NTP, a company with no product TiVo has an existing business which could be hurt if they are seen as a bully. Though if TiVo sought an injunction simply stopping the sale of new Dish PVRs it would put Echostar at a disadvantage competitively without inconvieniencing existing customers and could produce a settlement.

Personally I hope there is a settlement, soon that results in Dish starting to offer real TiVo units, as a Dish Customer and the owner of two TiVo's this would be the best of both worlds for me.

[Travis @ Apr 27th 2006 12:14PM]

I don't know if they are doing in all markets, but I have been seeing quite a few Tivo ads on TV lately. And in the Airport Tivo had a Kiosk setup. Are they suddenly trying to market after all these years?

[Alcaron @ Apr 27th 2006 12:46PM]

We'd like none of it...now excuse us while we keep posting about it.

lol...what?

[The Jeremy @ Apr 27th 2006 2:03PM]

This shows how stubborn Charles Ergin is. Perhaps he should be replaced just like McNealey (sic) at Sun was recently.

Any simpleton with an IQ of 70 could see the benefit for Echostar/DISH to settle with TiVo and start offering DVRs with TiVo software standard to their customers. It would definitely be a leg up against Murdoch dictated DirecTV with his stubborn favoring of the inferior NDS DVR platform (which he owns) over the superior TiVo platform.

[Greg Sudderth @ May 2nd 2006 12:07AM]

I agree re: stubbornness...and, as a 3x DirecTiVo customer (and previous REALLY expensive 1st generation unit...as in, 1k$) I think I'd go with regular TiVo gen 2's (3 by then?) and dumb tuner boxes instead of the new DVR. The gen-2-media/at home features are 10x more interesting than some other DVR. Sure, maybe its better at something 1:1, but, the newer Tivo features are more of a "system approach" and VERY convenient when you include a burner and the "move my movie to the treadmill please" features.