In Massachusetts, Akamai Prevails in Patent Litigation

CAMBRIDGE, MA - Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM) announced that a jury in the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts returned a verdict that Limelight Networks, Inc. is infringing the content delivery patent asserted by Akamai. As a result, the jury awarded Akamai $45,526,946 in damages, plus interest.

The verdict, which came at the end of a three-week trial in Boston, stemmed from a lawsuit that Akamai had filed in 2006. The jury found that Limelight infringed all four of the claims that Akamai had asserted in its Internet content delivery patent, U.S. patent 6,108,703, issued in the name of Akamai founders Tom Leighton and the late Danny Lewin.

The jury rejected Limelight’s defense that Akamai’s patent was invalid.

“We are extremely pleased with the jury’s verdict,” said Melanie Haratunian, senior vice president and general counsel of Akamai. “Today’s ruling recognizes the strength of Akamai’s patent portfolio and is a tangible reflection of our resolve to vigorously defend the Company’s intellectual property.”

Akamai intends to ask the Court to issue a permanent injunction prohibiting Limelight from continuing to sell infringing services.