Voice over Internet Protocol provider Vonage will pay $80 million to settle a patent dispute with Reston-based Sprint Nextel.
The announcement by the two companies comes after a Kansas City, Kan., jury found in September that Vonage should pay $69.5 million for infringing on six patents. The settlement also includes money for the future use of the patents.
Under the agreement, Sprint has agreed to license to Vonage the company’s entire VoIP portfolio, the companies said Monday.
Vonage, based in Holmdel, N.J., has 2.4 million subscribers.
“We are pleased to resolve our dispute with Sprint and enter into a productive future relationship,” Vonage Chief Executive Sharon O’Leary said.
Sprint’s VoIP patents involve such processes as connecting telephone calls between traditional networks and broadband networks. The settlement resolves all claims in the initial dispute, according to Sprint.
Shares of Vonage jumped $1.15, or 122.6 percent, to $2.56 Monday, while shares of Sprint Nextel slipped 52 cents, or 2.7 percent, to $18.49, both on the New York Stock Exchange.
