Rates Technology, which holds patents for the process by which most Internet phone calls are made, confirmed on Friday that it is <A HREF="http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=internetNews&storyid=2005-12-30T182015Z_01_KWA060444_RTRUKOC_0_US-GOOGLE-LAWSUIT.xml">suing Google over its Web-based phone calling system.</A> New York-based RTI said it estimated that damages from the lawsuit could reach $5 billion, assuming the litigation process takes four years as the market for Internet-based phone services booms. RTI holds two patents in the telecommunications field and generally takes a one-time fee of up to $5 million to cover companies who provide the services or the equipment to support them. It filed the suit against Google in October.