In a massive patent verdict, a federal jury in East Texas has ordered Verizon (NYSE: VZ) to pay patent holder General Access Solutions, a total of $847 million, The Register reported. That total is the sum of $583 million that a jury considered a “reasonable royalty” for infringing US Patent No. 7,230,931 (the ‘931), and another $264 million for infringing the other, US Patent No. 9,426,794 (the ‘794).
Dallas-based non-practicing entity General Access Solutions, which acquired the patents from original inventor, Raze Technologies, claims elements of Verizon’s 5G wireless networks, smartphone hotspots, wireless home routers, and MiFi devices violate its intellectual property. In the original complaint, it claims that Verizon’s base station equipment infringes its ‘931 patent – that has to do with beamforming networks across cell sites – and Verizon wireless devices that receive 4G and 5G cell signals infringe its ‘794 patent when they route information to mobile stations using 802.11 WiFi communications protocols.
According to the complaint, devices that infringe ‘794 include WiFi home or office routers with cellular backhaul, WiFi “hotspots” and even smartphones that have WiFi hotspot functionality. Both patents were originally filed in 2001.
Verizon argued that the patents were invalid due to a lack of written description and/or not being “fully enabled,” but the jury checked “no” on the form when asked if it agreed with this.
District Judge Rodney Gilstrap allowed Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) to act as intervenor on February 22, 2023. Ericsson makes some of the allegedly infringing kit, including base stations, and sells it to Verizon.
Ericsson will be on the hook for part of that verdict, if it stands, according to Law360, which added that such large verdicts “are often overturned or trimmed by the Federal Circuit.”
Ericsson commented: “The judicial process is ongoing, and we will therefore refrain from commenting on the details of it. We do, however, strongly disagree with the jury’s verdict and continue to support Verizon in its vigorous challenge to the result.”
Verizon had not commented to The Register by press time.
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