HP-EDS ordered to pay £200m to BSkyB

The case was heard at the Royal Courts of Justice

HP-EDS has been ordered to pay BSkyB £200m-worth of damages in an interim payment after being found guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation in a legal battle over a failed IT system.

At a hearing yesterday the Technology and Construction Court ordered payment to be made by 4pm on 17 February.

BSkyB's original claim was for £700m but the two sides are in ongoing negotiations over the amount that should be paid.

In a statement, BSkyB said: "EDS have agreed to make interim payment of £200m to Sky within the next 14 days. The full amount of damages will be finalised in due course."

Both sides are estimated to have spent more than £40m in legal fees.

The case, which has been running for more than five years, is investigating whether EDS made fraudulent claims on installation time, cost and performance when it was selling a customer relationship management system to BSkyB.

Last month HP-EDS was found to be guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation after one of its key witnesses in the trial was found to have lied about the origin of his degree, which he obtained online.

HP-EDS says it will appeal the judgment but is not expected to win.