A Delaware jury has sided with Ciena Corp. in its patent fight with Corvis
. The jury found that Corvis’ CorWave system infringes Ciena’s patent titled “WDM Optical Communication System With Remodulators,” which covers optical communication technology pioneered by Ciena.
Ciena’s suit alleged Corvis’ infringement of four Ciena patents for optical transport technology. In a February trial, a jury found that one of the patents was infringed and that two were not infringed, but the jury was deadlocked on the fourth patent. The latest jury ruling in favor of the Linthicum, Md.-based Ciena was the result of a retrial specifically for the fourth patent.
Ciena plans to move for an injunction prohibiting sales of infringing products.
Almost three years, Ciena began claiming that Dr. David Huber took more than his $200 million in Ciena stock when he left the company in 1997 to form Corvis Corp.
In its initial complaint, the company contended, “Ciena has made significant investment in research and development in technology relating to optical networking communications equipment and the company’s efforts and investment have resulted in innovation and advancements in that market. Many of these advancements are the subject of patents issued to Ciena by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. In such cases where Ciena believes there is infringement on these patents by third parties, Ciena will seek to protect and enforce its intellectual property rights and technology leadership on behalf of its shareholders.”