Last March 25, U.S. District Court Judge David Folsom extended its DVR ruling on the TiVo patent infringement case against Dish Network until April 30, 2010.   

Dish Network was hoping for a rehearing with the Appeals Court on the software review which Folsom denied due to his busy schedule in the courts.

According to an analyst of Bernstein Research Craig Moffett, it would be unlikely for Dish to have prepared a workaround for its DVR by April 30.  He says that Dish has two options in case it fails to reach a settlement with TiVo.  The satellite TV company could cease the use of all of its DVR, thereby shutting down all infringing satellite TV receivers on April 30 or continue using the device which may later cause additional sanctions from the courts. 

Worst case scenario: Hundreds –or millions of Dish Network subscribers will immediately file termination of their services in a matter of days after the April 30 deadline.  Moffett says that the $3B sanction is no longer in question.  The company is still likely to shut down the existing infringing DVR receivers even if Dish Network finds a way to work around TiVo’s software blueprint.  This is an outcome that investors and a lot of Dish subscribers will not be happy about. However, there is a rumor that Dish Network may endeavor to buy out TiVo and make the lawsuit go away.

The Best Dish Network and Direct TV offers are:

Related Topics:

• Dish Network Seeks Ways to Redesign Around TiVo's Patent
• Online Video Is Not A Complete Solution, Dish Network Is Still Better
• Google Playing with TV Search Service via Set-top Boxes
• Direct TV and Versus Reaches Resolution After a Year of Blackout