Global site navigation

US jury orders Meta to pay $174.5 mn for violating patents
Business and Economy

US jury orders Meta to pay $174.5 mn for violating patents

by  AFP 2 min read
Voxer co-founder Tom Katis said communications system 'shortcomings' encountered when his US Army unit was ambushed in Afghanistan led to patented technology at issue in his lawsuit against Facebook and Instagram
Voxer co-founder Tom Katis said communications system 'shortcomings' encountered when his US Army unit was ambushed in Afghanistan led to patented technology at issue in his lawsuit against Facebook and Instagram. Photo: Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP
Source: AFP

PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!

A US jury on Wednesday ordered Meta to pay $174.5 million for violating live-streaming patents developed by a US Army veteran seeking to fix shortcomings in battlefield communications.

A trial in Texas federal court ended with jurors deciding that "live" features at Facebook and Instagram used technology patented by Voxer, a company co-founded by Tom Katis, legal documents showed.

"We believe the evidence at trial demonstrated that Meta did not infringe Voxer's patents," a company spokesperson said in response to an AFP inquiry.

"We intend to seek further relief, including filing an appeal."

Katis had reenlisted in the army after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States and served as a Special Forces communications sergeant in Afghanistan, court filings said.

Read also

US leads new pledges to fight child malnutrition

When his combat unit was ambushed in Kunar province, he felt that the systems for coordinating reinforcements, medical evacuations and more "were ill-suited for time-sensitive communications with multiple groups in a highly disruptive environment," the complaint said.

PAY ATTENTION: Follow Briefly News on Twitter and never miss the hottest topics! Find us at @brieflyza!

"Mr. Katis and his team began developing communications solutions in 2006 to remedy these shortcomings," his lawyers said.

"The new technologies enabled transmission of voice and video communications with the immediacy of live communication and the reliability and convenience of messaging."

Facebook approached San Francisco-based Voxer about potential collaboration after it launched a Walkie Talkie app in 2011, but no agreement was reached, according to legal documents.

Instead, the lawsuit argued, Facebook went on to launch Facebook Live and Instagram Live, incorporating Voxer technology into the features.

Source: AFP

Authors:
AFP avatar

AFP AFP text, photo, graphic, audio or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. AFP news material may not be stored in whole or in part in a computer or otherwise except for personal and non-commercial use. AFP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions in any AFP news material or in transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages whatsoever. As a newswire service, AFP does not obtain releases from subjects, individuals, groups or entities contained in its photographs, videos, graphics or quoted in its texts. Further, no clearance is obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP material. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP material.

Hot: