TiVo says its patent on DVRs upheld

— -- TiVo said Thursday that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office upheld its patent for digital video recorders that's at the heart of a lawsuit against satellite company EchoStar.

The decision may bolster TiVo's position in the lawsuit, pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C. That court, which specializes in U.S. patent law, is considering the validity of the patent and whether EchoStar uses the technology.

"Today's decision by the PTO brings us another step closer to ending EchoStar's continued infringement, and we are hopeful that the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will uphold the district court judgment," TiVo said in the statement.

TiVo surged $1.48, or 24.8%, to $7.46. EchoStar, the company behind the Dish Network, fell 14 cents to $42.70.

EchoStar said it was disappointed by the decision and hopeful the appeals court will reverse the patent-infringement verdict won by TiVo.

The patent office's review, called a re-examination, was limited to whether TiVo's invention was new.

The federal appeals court can take more issues into account when considering the validity of the patent.

A notice of intent to issue a re-examination certificate, dated Wednesday, was posted on the agency's website.