Meta to Pay Voxer $174.5 Million Over Violation of Live Streaming Patents

A US jury on Wednesday ordered Meta to pay $174.5 million (roughly Rs. 1405 crore) for violating live-streaming patents developed by a US Army veteran in search of to repair shortcomings in battlefield communications.

A trial in Texas federal court docket ended with jurors deciding that “live” options at Facebook and Instagram used expertise patented by Voxer, an organization co-founded by Tom Katis, authorized paperwork confirmed.

“We believe the evidence at trial demonstrated that Meta did not infringe Voxer’s patents,” an organization spokesperson mentioned in response to an AFP inquiry.

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

Katis had reenlisted within the military after the September 11, 2001 assaults within the United States and served as a Special Forces communications sergeant in Afghanistan, court docket filings mentioned.

When his fight unit was ambushed in Kunar province, he felt that the programs for coordinating reinforcements, medical evacuations and extra “were ill-suited for time-sensitive communications with multiple groups in a highly disruptive environment,” the criticism mentioned.

“Mr. Katis and his team began developing communications solutions in 2006 to remedy these shortcomings,” his attorneys mentioned.

“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, however no settlement was reached, based on authorized paperwork.

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