Telegram Was Ordered to Pay Over $620,000 to a Startup Over the Gram Cryptocurrency Lawsuit

by Samuel White

The US District Court ordered Telegram Messenger Inc. to reimburse legal costs for over $620,000 to the American startup Lantah LLC.

Recall that Telegram filed a lawsuit against a Florida-based startup in May 2018. A lawsuit filed on May 11 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California alleges that Lantah LLC violated Telegram's rights when it applied for the Gram trademark. Daniel Jeffrey, the crypto commerce company founder, emphasized that, contrary to Telegram's statement, they used the Gram trademark before he learned about Telegram's intentions to create a similar product.

Then the TON blockchain platform project was closed, and there was no point in the proceedings with Lantah LLC anymore. In August 2020, it was already known that Durov's company would have to cover the legal costs of Lantah LLC. The exact amount has now been revealed.

Telegram and SEC Concluded a Settlement Agreement
On June 25, it became known that Telegram and the SEC entered into an agreement of lawsuit, under which Durov’s team would pay a fine of $18.5 million, and would also be obliged to return $1.22 billion to investors.
The Internet ProtocolSamuel White

The court awarded the Florida company $618,240 and $6,737 in damages, which includes attorney fees. It is known that the lawyer's fee was calculated based on the market rate of $600 per hour of work.

Lantah LLC's claims were partially satisfied by the court, as the company also asked to reimburse $1,615,140, costs of lawyer's services, based on an hourly rate of $900.