AOL, Vringo reach partial patent settlement

AOL Inc. confirmed Monday that it has reached a partial patent settlement with ringtone company Vringo Inc. related to online search and advertising.

The settlement is partial because AOL is still named in the lawsuit as a customer of Google Inc., the main defendant in the patent suit.

Filed in 2011, the lawsuit claims that Google, AOL, IAC/InterActiveCorp and others violate two patents related to Internet search filtering technology used to place the best ads in the best positions on websites. A trial date for the lawsuit is scheduled for Oct. 16.

Vringo declined to comment. AOL did not comment on the terms of the settlement.

Vringo's shares rose 12 cents, or 3.4 percent, to $3.70 in after-hours trading. The stock closed the regular session up 46 cents, or 14.7 percent, at $3.58.