Rovi’s Appeal in Virgin Media Patent Case Rejected

LONDON: The Court of Appeal has dismissed Rovi's claims regarding patent cases brought against Virgin Media involving the ability to pause and resume on-demand and live TV programs on different devices.

Rovi originally sued Virgin Media in High Court, but Judge John Baldwin QC found the claim to be invalid and revoked the patent in its entirety. Rovi appealed the High Court’s decision to revoke the patent. The Court of Appeal has now upheld the High Court’s decision, rejected Rovi’s appeal in its entirety and again ordered Rovi to reimburse Virgin Media’s legal costs. The patent will now be revoked.

The decision by the Court of Appeal comes after a string of 11 successive defeats for Rovi, in which 11 out of 11 patents asserted against Virgin Media were either been found invalid and/or revoked by either the English Court or by the European Patent Office.

Brigitte Trafford, the chief corporate affairs officer at Virgin Media, said: “Virgin Media’s staunch defense of Rovi’s meritless patent claims has been vindicated by the High Court and the Court of Appeal. This latest victory in the Court of Appeal follows 11 defeats out of 11 for Rovi, and upholds our position regarding Rovi patents over the last seven years. One Rovi appeal remains and we are confident that it will be rejected by the court.”