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Cox Communications did not infringe patents owned by Verizon Communications, a jury in Virginia decided on Monday.
Verizon (NYSE: VZ) had accused Cox of infringing six patents related to Voice-over-IP telephony, but a jury at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia decided against Verizon on all six patents.
The suit came as VoIP features are emerging as significant revenue drivers for major ISPs from both the cable and telecommunications businesses. Comcast, the largest U.S. cable service provider, posted a higher second-quarter profit in July, citing particular strength in its VoIP business.
Verizon settled a similar suit against digital phone service provider Vonage last year for $117.5 million.
Verizon closed at $29.96 on Monday, down 4.1 percent on a day when the U.S. stock market was down sharply. Cox Communications is unlisted.
Cox Communications said it was pleased with the verdict.
“We remain deeply committed to providing our customers high-quality phone service at a great value, and look forward to competing vigorously with Verizon in the marketplace, not the courtroom,” the company said in an e-mailed statement.
David Fish, a spokesman for Verizon, said in an e-mail that “Verizon is a major-league innovator in new technology for our customers, and we will continue to innovate and to protect our patented inventions.”
