spacetoday.net: SSL, ViaSat reach settlement on dispute

SSL, ViaSat reach settlement on dispute

Posted: Mon, Sep 8, 2014, 6:03 AM ET (1003 GMT)
Space Systems Loral and ViaSat announced this weekend an out-of-court settlement to an ongoing legal dispute regarding breach of contract and patent infringement on a satellite program. Under the deal, SSL and its former parent company, Loral Space and Communications, will pay $40 million to ViaSat now and $60 million plus interest over the next two and a half years; in turn, ViaSat will drop its suit and free SSL and its customers from any lawsuits over future use of the disputed patents. ViaSat had filed suit seeking more than $1 billion in damages, alleging SSL had infringed on patents owned by ViaSat after it built the ViaSat-1 spacecraft by using that technology on satellites for other customers. A court initially sided with ViaSat, but in August vacated the original award of $286 million.