Vonage Holdings Corp., the unprofitable Internet phone company, Wednesday asked a U.S. appeals court to reconsider a patent ruling that would force it to alter its business and pay royalties to Verizon Communications Inc.
Vonage is seeking a reversal of a Sept. 26 ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington that upheld much of a $58 million jury verdict against Vonage. The company wants the original three-judge panel that heard the case or the entire 12-judge court to review the decision.
Unless all of the verdict is thrown out, Vonage faces a court order that it stop connecting Internet calls to standard phone lines and halt certain features such as call waiting. Two analysts said the Verizon case could push Vonage into bankruptcy.
Vonage, based in Holmdel, N.J., agreed to pay $80 million to settle another patent-infringement trial it lost to Sprint Nextel Corp., the third-biggest U.S. mobile-phone service provider.
