Limelight Networks announced earlier today that the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has affirmed a lower court decision from earlier in the year in favor of Limelight Networks in the patent suit with Level 3 Communications. On January 23rd of this year the court ruled in favor of Limelight which Level 3 appealed.

I understand the idea that companies have to protect their intellectual property, but hopefully all of this patent suit nonsense between the CDNs can now come to an end. So far Akamai, Limelight and Level 3 have all been tied up in patent suits for years for which no company who initiated the suit has won damages of any kind. What a waste of time and money on all sides. If you want to see the three year history on the suits, along with all the filings, visit www.ContentDeliveryPatents.com which will take you to those posts on my blog.

Related Posts:

– Copy Of Judge's Ruling In Akamai/Limelight Case Now Online (4/09)

– Judge Overturns Jury Verdict In Akamai and Limelight Case (4/09)

– Jury Rules In Limelight's Favor, Not Infringing On Level 3 Patents (1/10)

– Level 3 and Limelight Should Settle Patent Suit, Here's How (1/09)

– Judge Denies Limelight's Motion For Summary Judgment In Level 3 Case (1/09)

– Details From Markman Ruling In Level 3 and Limelight Networks Patent Case (12/08)

– Patent Details Emerge In Level 3's Suit Against Limelight Networks (8/08)

– Level 3 Files Suit Against Limelight Networks Over CDN Patents (12/07)

From Hulu to Netflix, streaming video is having a powerful impact on the traditional television industry. But are consumers really cutting the cord and bypassing cable operators in favor of online video?

At the Streaming Media East show on May 11th and 12th, we've got Rafat Ali, Editor and Publisher of PaidContent.org moderating a panel on "Cutting The Cord On TV: Will Online Video Lead To Cable's Demise?". The session will discuss how broadcast networks are facing some of the same threats as the newspaper market and how services like TV Everywhere and over-the-top (OTT) content might change the cable industry.

• Moderator: Rafat Ali, Editor, Publisher, PaidContent.org
• Shalini Govil-Pai, Lead Product Manager, YouTube/Google
• Brian Jaquet, Director, Corp. Communications, Roku
• Ron Berryman, CEO, Canvas Technology
• Richard Bullwinkle, Chief Evangelist, Rovi

It's not too late to get a pass to the show and readers of my blog can register using my own personal discount code of DRF1, which gets you $200 off the ticket price.

The annual  $1B U.S. online video ad spend represents 1/60 of the overall U.S. TV ad spend, yet online video represents 1/7 of U.S. audience viewing time, a number that will likely grow to 1/5 over the next few years. What will it take for online video advertising to become a truly effective medium, with spending that reflects viewing times?

At the Streaming Media East show on May 11th and 12th, we've got a great session entitled "Advertising Spending: From Trickle to Torrent". Come hear what's right, what's wrong, and what will need to change if the industry hopes to make its 5-year forward growth projections.

• Moderator: Bill Lederer, CEO, Kantar Video
• Jason Krebs, EVP, Sales and Marketing, ScanScout
• Ari Paparo, Product Director, Advertiser Products, DoubleClick
• Jennifer Okula, VP, Data Innovation, Safecount
• Jahn Wolland, Director, National Sales, Online Video, Microsoft
  

It's not too late to get a pass to the show and readers of my blog can register using my own personal discount code of DRF1, which gets you $200 off the ticket price.

With the latest iPad, iPhones, Blackberry's and Palm Pre's focusing on video applications, is portable streaming finally getting ready for prime time? How is the streaming industry developing and re-purposing content for mobile streaming and what will the business models look like?

At the Streaming Media East show on May 11th and 12th, we've got Ryan Lawler, Staff Writer for NewTeeVee.com moderating a panel on "Going Mobile: Is Portable Media Finally Here? ". The session will discuss what opportunities exist today for content owners and operators, as well as how the business of mobile video will change in the future.

• Moderator: Ryan Lawler, Staff Writer, NewTeeVee.com
• John Zehr, SVP, GM, ESPN Mobile
• Martin Webb, Technology Manager, Multimedia, Symbian Foundation
• Vicki Mealer, Senior Director Product Management, Qualcomm FLO Technologies
• Frank Bentley, Principal Staff Research Scientist, Experiences Research, Motorola

It's not too late to get a pass to the show and readers of my blog can register using my own personal discount code of DRF1, which gets you $200 off the ticket price.

Hot on the heels of funding by 3Crowd Technologies and EdgeCast Networks, content delivery network Cotendo announced it has raised $12M in a Series C round led by Tenaya Capital and joined by its current investors Sequoia Capital and Benchmark Capital.

While California based Cotendo is not as widely known as some of the other CDNs in the market, that's primarily due to the fact that they are not in the video delivery business. Many of the current CDNs you hear about today have been focused on delivering video content from day one. Cotendo on the other hand launched to the market a year ago with a focus on offering dynamic site acceleration (DSA) and application acceleration, two services that have a lot more complexity than video distribution and much higher margins.

While these services are not as widely known as video delivery and not talked about by the media, they are the exact services that nearly all of the other CDNs are now trying to roll-out to help diversify their revenue. Typically these offerings are referred to as "value add services" and are not subject to the pricing pressure we've seen from the video contracts in the market. With pricing on video delivery dropping and vanilla flavored CDN services becoming commotizied, nearly every other CDN outside of Akamai, who already has these services, is trying to get into the business.

In a call with the company yesterday they revealed that they now have 120 customers which is pretty good considering they didn't have any just over year ago. The company plans to use the money raised to market their services and expand into some international markets and recently opened new offices in France and Germany.

As I mentioned in a post last month, dynamic site acceleration (DSA) and application acceleration are going to become the next big thing in the content delivery industry. Video services have had their time in the spotlight for many years but the real revenue growth potential for the CDNs and their best shot at becoming profitable is going to come from all of the other CDN services outside of video delivery. Delivering video for a customer in the media vertical or the broadcast vertical is very similar and the offering pretty much looks the same. But when it comes to offering DSA and app acceleration services to finance, retail, enterprise and media markets, the solution can change quite a bit depending on the vertical.

Offering dynamic site acceleration (DSA), application acceleration and small object delivery is very different than delivering video and large objects and I'll be writing more about those services next month. In the mean time, if you want to learn more about these services I will be moderating a panel at the Content Delivery Summit on Monday entitled, "Moving Beyond Video: Application Delivery and Dynamic Site Acceleration". Speakers include executives from Akamai, CDNetworks and Cotendo.

At the Streaming Media East show on May 11th and 12th, make sure you stop by the StreamingMedia.com booth for your chance to win our "Ultimate Tech Geek Giveaway". One lucky winner will receive an iPad 3G, iPod Touch, Apple TV and a $100 iTunes gift card. The drawing is open to any attendee who stops by the StreamingMedia.com booth and renews their free subscription to Streaming Media magazine or signs up for a new subscription. Make sure you don't miss out on your chance at winning all of this Apple gear.

With the number of new broadband-enabled TVs and Blu-ray players expected to be sold, along with devices such as the Xbox, Roku, TiVo, and PS3, consumers now have many ways to get their video fix. So what are the new business models that will be created from these new devices? What hurdles need to be overcome so that content can be monetized for multiple platforms?

At the Streaming Media East show on May 11th and 12th, we've got Peter Kafka, Senior Editor at All Things Digital moderating a panel on "The Impact Of Broadband-Enabled TVs, Gaming Consoles And Devices". The session will explore the role of current consumer entertainment
devices in this new convergent world and how these devices will play
together to offer a superior video experience.

• Moderator: Peter Kafka, Senior Editor, All Things Digital
• Tara Maitra, VP, GM, Content Services, TiVo
• Dave Habiger, CEO, Sonic Solutions
• Avner Ronen, CEO, Boxee
• Alex Limberis, COO, Popbox

It's not too late to get a pass to the show and readers of my blog can register using my own personal discount code of DRF1, which gets you $200 off the ticket price.