Smartsky’s preliminary injunction against Gogo denied
Smartsky’s application for a preliminary injunction to stop Gogo from marketing its Air-To-Ground (ATG) offering has been denied.
Yesterday, the US District Court for the District of Delaware’s ruling denied Smartsky’s request, which aimed to ban the marketing of the product while litigation is pending and before the two companies go to trial. Smartsky filed the motion as it claimed Gogo’s ATG service infringe Smartsky’s patents.
The two connectivity firms have been in dispute for the past two years over the patent on the ATG offerings (see timeline below). The two rivals have opposing views of what this latest ruling means.
“This ruling supports our frequently stated position that Gogo is not infringing any valid Smartsky patent,” said Oakleigh Thorne, chairman and CEO, Gogo. “We look forward to successfully launching Gogo 5G and remain unwavering in our focus on executing our strategy to deliver improved broadband performance for business aviation customers.”
Meanwhile, Smartsky doesn’t see the most recent ruling as a defeat. The company said: “The legal bar is high for a preliminary injunction and such procedural rulings are rarely granted. But it is a preliminary injunction, which by definition happens before the case is fully considered by the court on a complete record.”
Last month, Gogo reported that it spent $5m in legal expenses over its patent dispute with Smartsky in its accounts for the second quarter ending June 30th 2022.
Timeline of dispute
- April 2020: Gogo submits petition to US Patent Office claiming Smartsky’s patent for its ATG offering was not valid
- September 2020: Smartsky successfully defends its patent, Gogo does not appeal decision
- February 2022: Smartsky files patent infringement lawsuit against Gogo, also files a motion for a preliminary injunction to have the court order Gogo to stop marketing ATG services
- September 2021: Smartsky denied preliminary injunction ruling.
