Tivo wins first round against EchoStar

The first  blow in Tivo's patent infringement case against EchoStar has been dealt, and it's EchoStar taking it on the chin, at least for now. A federal jury awarded Tivo $73.9 million, a decision EchoStar plans to appeal. I'll admit right up front that I don't have enough technical expertise to say what was actually invented by Tivo and what technology was already in place beforehand, but EchoStar claims the patent is too broad. Meanwhile, Tivo has extended it's partnership with DirecTV, which currently accounts for the majority of Tivo subscribers. As part of the deal, the two companies have agreed not to file patent claims against one another.