Extreme wins patent suit against Enterasys

Extreme Networks this week said it won a year-old patent infringement case against competitor Enterasys Networks.

A jury in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin was unanimous in awarding victory to Extreme, the company says. The jury found that Enterasys infringed on three of Extreme's asserted patents.

Extreme also says it defeated Enterasys' challenge to the validity of the company's patents. In addition, Extreme defeated Enterasys' claims for damages when the court determined that Extreme did not infringe on any of the Enterasys patents in the lawsuit.

The trial lasted two weeks.

In addition to the damages awarded by the jury, Extreme is seeking an injunction prohibiting the infringing Enterasys products from using the patented technology and recovery of its attorney fees.

According to Enterasys, Extreme's award was US$200,000. And the Wisconsin court did not find any "copying or willful infringement" by Enterasys, the company claims.

"A final judgment in this matter has not been issued by the Wisconsin court," Enterasys said in a prepared statement. "Enterasys respectfully disagrees with the Wisconsin jury's decision and will continue to pursue all avenues of recourse, including post-trial motions and appeals, to set this verdict aside."

The Wisconsin trial results are unrelated to the separate, ongoing patent infringement action brought by Enterasys against Extreme in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts in 2005, according to Enterasys. The specific Enterasys patents involved in the current Massachusetts proceedings were not involved in the Wisconsin trial, the company says, adding that it continues to "vigorously pursue the patent infringement claims against Extreme" in the Massachusetts case.

"Enterasys initiated a patent litigation process knowing there could be minor setbacks," says Mike Fabiaschi, Enterasys president and CEO. "We have undertaken a larger strategic process to aggressively defend our intellectual property rights. Our resolve is stronger than ever and in the end we are confident in the strength of our industry innovations."

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