Future of Net phone firm Vonage hangs in balance

FUTURE OF NET PHONE FIRM VONAGE HANGS IN BALANCE
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Leslie Cauley]
Verizon and Vonage on Wednesday will present opening statements in a patent-infringement case that could have a big impact on consumers and the nascent Internet telephone industry. Most immediately at risk is the future of Vonage. Vonage, one of the best-known brands in the Internet phone world, acknowledged last week that it doesn't have a plan for getting around use of technology that Verizon claims violates patents it owns. The upshot: If Verizon prevails in court, Vonage could be forced to shut down, at least temporarily, while it redesigns its service. That could cause a lot of heartburn for Vonage's 2 million customers. Brooke Schulz, a Vonage spokeswoman, said Monday that Verizon's claims are baseless. "This is about Verizon trying to stifle competition," she said. "We have not infringed on their patents, period."
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20070220/vonage.art.htm