A Delaware federal jury has ruled that GoDaddy must pay $170 million to Express Mobile, a California-based tech firm, for infringing on its patents related to website-building technology.
The decision, delivered on Friday, marks a significant development in a long-running dispute between the two companies. The jury concluded that GoDaddy’s website creation tools violated two of Express Mobile’s patents covering web and mobile design innovations.
GoDaddy Plans to Appeal the Verdict
In a statement following the verdict, GoDaddy said it disagreed with the jury’s decision and intends to “vigorously fight it in district court and on appeal, if necessary.”
Express Mobile’s attorney, Jay Nuttall, praised the ruling, calling it “an outstanding result for our client that confirms the value of Express Mobile’s foundational patents.”
Background: The Patent Dispute
Express Mobile, founded by former IBM engineer Steven Rempell, owns patents involving mobile and web design frameworks. The company filed its lawsuit against GoDaddy in 2019, alleging that GoDaddy’s website development platform used technology similar to its patented innovations.
GoDaddy, headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, denied the accusations and argued that the patents in question were invalid. The company also noted that it won a separate jury trial in 2023 over similar infringement claims brought by Express Mobile.
Past Legal Battles
This isn’t Express Mobile’s first high-profile case. In 2022, the company secured a $40 million verdict against Shopify, another web technology firm. However, that verdict was later overturned in 2023 by a federal court in Delaware after Shopify’s appeal.
The latest ruling against GoDaddy could have broader implications for companies offering drag-and-drop web design tools, potentially reshaping how these platforms handle patent-licensed technologies.
📅 Source: Reuters
(Reporting by Blake Brittain in Washington; Editing by Diane Craft)
