Vonage says it is business as usual after the latest ruling

Vonage is appealing against a ruling last month that it infringed technology patents owned by Verizon, one of the US's two dominant telecoms groups.

It was prevented from using technology to connect users pending the appeal, but this ban has now been rescinded.

Vonage's shares rose nearly 50% after the court order.

Patent row

Vonage is a pioneer in the market for voice-over-internet telephony, which allows users to make cheap phone calls.

In layman's terms, it means business as usual, Vonage spokesman

But the firm was found to have violated Verizon's intellectual property rights and told to pay its rival $58m (�30m) in damages as well as royalties on future sales.

Analysts said a permanent injunction on securing new customers could have threatened the firm's future.

"In layman's terms, it means business as usual," Brooke Schulz, a Vonage spokesman, said after the latest ruling.

In the original court case, Verizon claimed the violations cost it more than $280m while Vonage argued Verizon should not have been granted the patents in the first place.

Analysts believe the dispute has reduced loss-making Vonage's chance of being bought out.