Skype Founders' Suit Threatens Sale
SAN JOSE, Calif. (
) -- A company owned by the founders of
Skype
filed a copyright suit against
eBay
(EBAY) - Get Report
and perhaps have tossed a wrench in a deal for a
group of investors to buy Skype
for $2 billion.
The suit was filed Wednesday in the Northern California U.S. District Court by Joltid Ltd., a company owned by Skype founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom.
The dispute centers on a peer-to-peer technology called "global index" that is owned by Joltid, the
Wall Street Journal
reports. The technology also is used at the core of Skype's software, which routes calls over the Internet instead of traditional phone lines, the newspaper notes.
Joltid terminated Skype's license for the software in March. The two companies have been embroiled since in a suit about that termination in a U.K. court, the
Journal
reports.
Joltid's suit seeks an injunction on Skype's use of the technology and damages it estimates of more than $75 million a day.
In a statement, eBay spokesman John Pluhowski said Joltid's allegations and claims "are without merit" and are "founded on fundamental legal and factual errors." He added that eBay is still on track to complete the sale of Skype during the fourth quarter, the
Associated Press
reports.
eBay has acknowledged in a regulatory filing that the close of the sale depends upon the investor group agreeing to the terms of any settlement with Joltid. It also is contingent upon no change or development taking place that would materially hurt Skype's business.
-- Reported by Joseph Woelfel in New York
.
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