Intellectual Property Analysis of DVR Patent Referenced in Ongoing Litigation between TiVo, Inc. and EchoStar Communications

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This week’s Patently Obvious report focuses on U.S. Patent No. 6,233,389 which has been at the heart of a series of litigation between TiVo, Inc. and EchoStar Communications dating back to January 2004. TiVo has repeatedly claimed that EchoStar and Dish Network infringe on the '389 patent with the production and sale of their DVR boxes.

This report focuses on patents of interest which predate and are concurrent to the TiVo patent, including public-domain alternatives.

The patent describes a Digital Video Recorder (DVR) system capable of simultaneously recording and playing back a TV signal.