Tivo Collects $215 Million Patent Settlement From AT&T

TiVo is on track to collect $215 million over the next seven years from AT&T, with an initial payment of $51 million, thanks to a two-year long settlement over a DVR lawsuit. TiVo had started suing AT&T in mid-2009, claiming that the telecom's DVR was in violation of some of TiVo's patents. Furthermore, according to a press release issued by TiVo, AT&T could possibly be forced to cough up even more if its number of DVR subscribers went above a particular threshold of users.

According to GigaOM, it seems like gradually over the years, TiVo has been "transforming itself from a CE player to a licensing entity". The company has been losing end-user subscribers for years now, only recently being able to increase subscriptions through partnerships with Virgin and RCN. Moreover, the only way TiVo has really been able make bank in the most recent years was, well, via patent lawsuits, followed by generally lucrative settlements, like this particular one with AT&T. Just last year, Dish Network and Echostar consented to fork over a total of $500 million to TiVo to settle a lawsuit brought against their, well, you guessed it, DVRs.

It seems like that AT&T can't get a legal break, whether it be from the court, or the FCC. SlashGear readers, what do you think? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below.