Judge issues order granting Vonage injunction

A federal district court judge has granted Vonage’s request for a preliminary injunction against the New York state commission, which ruled in May that the voice-over-IP provider should be regulated as a telecom carrier in some areas, particularly in terms of providing E-911 services.

U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Douglas Eaton, who previously granted Vonage a temporary injunction, said in his opinion that he supported the preliminary injunction because the VoIP provider demonstrated "it is likely to succeed on the merits of its claim" and "would suffer irreparable harm" if the New York state commission’s decision was allowed to stand.

The ruling marks the second time Vonage has received a preliminary injunction to block state regulators from imposing traditional regulations on its VoIP service. Vonage won a similar case in Minnesota that was cited by Eaton, who also noted the FCC’s pending IP services proceeding in his ruling.

Eaton said he will review the case again in December, when he will determine whether to grant a permanent injunction after considering any rulings issued by the FCC or other courts that could impact the decision.

Until then, the judge said the New York state commission has no jurisdiction over Vonage. In addition, the order calls for Vonage to continue offering its current 911 and to participate in industrywide workshops to address emergency calling, but the judge noted that VoIP provider would be participating on a "voluntary" basis.

Vonage has resisted state regulation, expressing fears that the potential for 50 different sets of regulation would hamper the business models of providers of the nascent voice technology. CEO Jeffrey Citron has said state regulation would threaten future investment in VoIP.