GoDaddy's $170 Million Compensation Penalty

GoDaddy, an internet domain registration organization, has been ordered to pay 170 million dollars in damages to Express Mobile for violating its rights in web development technology. This decision was made by a federal jury in Delaware and announced to the public on Friday.

The jury accepted the claim that GoDaddy’s web design tools infringed on two of Express Mobile’s patents.

GoDaddy stated that it would appeal the decision and announced that it would "vigorously defend itself in court and, if necessary, in the appeals process." Express Mobile's attorney Jay Nuttall expressed that this decision was “a great outcome for customers” and affirmed the value of Express Mobile’s core patents.

Founded in Novato, California, Express Mobile holds patents developed for internet and mobile technologies. The company’s founder, former IBM engineer Steven Rempell, filed a lawsuit against GoDaddy in 2019, claiming that the company's web development user tools infringed on Express Mobile’s patents related to similar technology.

Tempe, Arizona-based GoDaddy refuted the claims, arguing that the patents were invalid. GoDaddy previously won a separate jury trial in 2023 concerning the Express Mobile infringement allegations.

Additionally, Express Mobile won 40 million dollars in a similar lawsuit against the e-commerce platform Shopify in 2022. However, Shopify succeeded in overturning this decision last year before a federal judge in Delaware.