UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): September 2, 2010
NEUTRAL TANDEM, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 001-33778 | 31-1786871 | ||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) |
(Commission File Number) |
(IRS Employer Identification No.) |
550 West Adams Street
9th Floor
Chicago, Illinois 60661
(Address of principal executive offices, including Zip Code)
(312) 384-8000
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
One South Wacker Drive
Suite 200
Chicago, Illinois 60606
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| ¨ | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| ¨ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
| Item 8.01. | Other Events. |
Proceeding in United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
As previously disclosed, on June 12, 2008, Neutral Tandem, Inc. (the “Company”) commenced a patent infringement action against Peerless Network, Inc., Peerless Network of Illinois, LLC and John Barnicle (collectively, “Peerless Network”) in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois to enforce U.S. Patent No. 7,123,708 (the “‘708 Patent”) (Neutral Tandem, Inc. v Peerless Network, Inc., Peerless Network of Illinois, LLC and John Barnicle, 08 CV 3402).
On September 2, 2010, the court overseeing the litigation issued an order granting Peerless Network’s motion for summary judgment. The court found that the ‘708 Patent is invalid in light of a prior patent, U.S. Patent No. 6,137,800.
Although the Company thanks the court for its work in the patent litigation, the Company disagrees with the court’s finding that the ‘708 Patent is invalid in light of U.S. Patent No. 6,137,800. The court’s decision means that the status quo that has existed since Peerless Network commenced operations will continue, namely that the parties will continue to compete directly without legal restriction. As such, the Company is evaluating all of its options.
For more information concerning the history of the litigation, as well as the inter partes reexamination of the ‘708 Patent currently being conducted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, please refer to the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2010.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| NEUTRAL TANDEM, INC. | ||||||
| /s/ Robert M. Junkroski | ||||||
| Date: September 2, 2010 | Name: | Robert M. Junkroski | ||||
| Title: | Chief Financial Officer | |||||