TiVo Claims Dismissed

Dish Network and Echostar scored a rare legal victory after the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ruled that TiVo's patent claims over its "time-warp" digital video recorder technology were invalid.

The ruling comes after a second re-examination of the patents by the PTO. Dish and Echostar applauded the ruling, and TiVo said it would follow up with additional arguments. The PTO's action doesn't stop a separate review of the patent-infringement case, which has leaned in TiVo's favor and could still lead to the satellite companies paying damages to the set-top box maker. But the PTO ruling could have ramifications for TiVo's case against AT&T Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. over their DVR services.