Rovi Corp. said it has inked an extension of its existing interactive program guide license and distribution agreement and patent licensing pact with Time Warner Cable.

Financial terms and the length of the extension were not announced, but the deal comes amid Charter Communications’ proposed merger with TWC and Bright House Networks

Rovi announced it has struck a multi-year year deal with Charter in April, which came to be as Rovi looked to lock up new licensing deals with its so-called “big-four” -- Comcast, Time Warner Cable, DirecTV (now part of AT&T) and Dish Network.

“We are pleased to continue our business relationship with Time Warner Cable,” Tom Carson, Rovi’s president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Rovi shares were up 8 cents (0.81%) to $9.95 each in Monday morning trading. 

Rovi shares were down more than 16% Thursday morning after a California court moved on Wednesday (July 15) to invalidate five Rovi patents and entered a judgement in favor of Netflix in the case.

Rovi intends to appeal.

“While we are pleased that the Court sided with Rovi on the key claim construction issues, we are disappointed in, and strongly disagree with, the Court’s decision finding the five patents invalid and plan to appeal that decision,” Samir Armaly, Rovi's EVP of intellectual property and licensing, said in a statement.

Update: Netflix issued this statement: "We are gratified by the Court’s judgment, which confirmed that Rovi’s patents are so broad and abstract as to be invalid."

Rovi and Netflix have been battling in the Northern District Court in Oakland even though the U.S. International Trade Commission, in November 2013, affirmed an earlier rulingthat Netflix’s streaming software did not infringe on Rovi patents tied to IPG technology.

Rovi noted that Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton found that the patents were invalid on the ground that they are not directed to patentable subject matter based on the Supreme Court’s 2014 ruling in Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank International.

In a statement, Armaly pointed out that Netflix’s litigation with Rovi was filed in 2011, more than two years before the Alice ruling.

“We are committed to enforcing our intellectual property against Netflix until the necessary licenses are in place,” he said. “As we do so, we will be selecting patents from our diverse patent portfolio with the benefit of having the Alice decision and its reasoning factored into that patent selection.”

Rovi also said Judge Hamilton also issued a claim construction ruling in the case in which the Court construed the nine disputed claim terms in the case, but only adopted Netflix’s proposed construction of a single term. The court, Rovi, added, also rejected attempts by Netflix to limit the scope of the patents to set-top box implementations.

Rovi, Amraly added, has been successful in licensing its technology to other OTT providers, including Apple, Google and Hulu, “and we remain confident that Netflix requires a similar license.”

Rovi recently renewed its deal with Charter Communications, and is in discussions to do the same with its so-called “big four” -- Comcast, Time Warner Cable, DirecTV and Dish Network.

Rovi shares were down $2.85 (16.25%) to $14.69 each in mid-day trading Thursday.

Activist investor Engaged Capital was successful in winning two board seats at video software and interactive guide specialist Rovi, ousting Jim O’Shaughnessy and board chairman Andrew Ludwick, according to preliminary voting info provided by Rovi’s proxy solicitor.

In their place, Rovi stockholders elected Raghavendra Rau, most recently the CEO of SeaChange International, and Glenn Welling, the founder and chief investment officer of Engaged Capital.

Engaged Capital, which has been unhappy with Rovi’s financial performance and strategy, had also originally put forth two other candidates for board seats at Rovi: David Lockwood, now CEO and president of EnergySolutions and a previous director of BigBand Networks (now part of Arris), and Philip A. Vachon, founder and a principal owner of IPMG AG. 

Rovi said Wednesday (May 13) that, per the company’s bylaws, Tom Carson,  Rovi’s president and CEO, will assume the role of interim chairman of the board.

In addition to Carson, Rovi stockholders also re-elected Alan L. Earhart; N. Steven Lucas; James E. Meyer; and Ruthann Quindlen. 

“We thank our stockholders for their efforts and consideration in re-electing five of our directors, and the continued confidence they have expressed in Rovi’s Board and strategy,” Carson said, in a statement. “We also value insights and feedback we have received from our stockholders over the past several weeks.  We look forward to welcoming Glenn and Raghu to the Board, once the vote has been certified, and to working with them constructively to build value for Rovi stockholders over the long term.”

In addition to thanking Ludwick and O’Shaughnessy for their service to Rovi, Carson said “Rovi has extremely exciting opportunities ahead, and we look forward to building on our leading IP portfolio and next-generation suite of products to deliver significant growth for years to come.”

Engaged Capital owns 550,000 shares of Rovi common stock.

“Our nominees will contribute fresh, independent, shareholder perspective to the boardroom, and bring extensive experience in developing and implementing strategies that increase shareholder value,” Welling said, in a statement. “Engaged Capital believes that Rovi has the potential to deliver significant value to shareholders. While we would have preferred to avoid a protracted proxy contest, we believe that this process provided shareholders with a forum to express an unequivocal preference for change.”

Before the vote, Rovi had hired Credit Suisse to help it defend against actions being led by Engaged, Reuters reported. Reuters reported in February that Rovi has received interested from private equity firms that have focused on a possible sale of all of Rovi or portions of the company, but said it was not yet clear whether Rovi was open to a sale.