Videotron welcomes Federal Court ruling against Xperi
Montréal, June 14, 2021 – Videotron is pleased with last Friday’s Federal Court decision in its dispute with U.S.-based Xperi (formerly known under the names Rovi and TiVo) over the alleged use of patented technology in Videotron’s illico viewing platform. Those patents have now been declared invalid.
“This ruling is an important victory for Videotron and all technology companies that grapple with organizations whose practices are akin to those of patent trolls, which create no value for society and cost millions of dollars per year,” said Pierre Karl Péladeau, President and CEO of Quebecor. “Patents should reward innovation, not hinder it. We have shown that businesses should not give in to unjustified threats. Quebecor and Videotron will continue to vigorously defend their interests.”
The full Federal Court decision remains subject to confidentiality requirements but should be released in the coming days.
Quebecor and Videotron believe that consideration should be given to adding anti-trolling provisions, such as exist in other jurisdictions, to the Patent Act in order to end this type of abuse of process.
Quebecor continues to fight piracy and counterfeiting
Throughout its existence, Quebecor has been an active player in Québec’s cultural and economic development, and it has been taking the necessary steps to fight piracy and counterfeiting for years. Among other things, it has defended its rights against Bell’s failure to implement adequate security systems (in 2015, Bell was ordered to pay $141 million), the counterfeiting of its content (the TVAddon app, the illegal rebroadcast of TVA channels by Konek), and more recently, in concert with other industry players, the Federal Court case concerning piracy of NHL games in Canada.
About Videotron
Videotron, a wholly owned subsidiary of Quebecor Media Inc., is an integrated communications company engaged in television, entertainment, Internet access, wireline telephone and mobile telephone services. Videotron is a leader in new technologies with its Helix home entertainment and management platform. As of March 31, 2022, Videotron was serving 1,406,400 television customers. It had 520,900 subscribers to its Club illico and Vrai video streaming services. Videotron is also the Québec leader in high-speed Internet access, with 1,846,100 subscribers as of March 31, 2022. As of the same date, Videotron had 1,626,400 subscriber connections to its mobile telephone service and was providing wireline telephone service to 803,600 Québec households and organizations. Videotron is ranked as one of Montréal’s top employers..
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