Microsoft loses patent appeal, ordered to alter Word
23 Dec 2009
The world's largest software maker Microsoft Corporation lost its $200-million patent-infringement appeal and was fined $290 million in enhanced damages as well as ordered to alter its popular Word software or stop selling the product.
The Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft was given until 11 January to make changes to its popular Word software or stop sales by the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington yesterday.
The court also ordered Microsoft to pay $290 million for infringing a patent belonging to Toronto-based software company i4i, which upheld the decision of a lower court.
Ontario-based i4i, which sells custom-XML add-ons to the ubiquitous word-processing software, had sued Microsoft in March 2007 alleging that the software giant wilfully infringed on its 1998 patent by building a method of processing custom XML into Word 2003 and Word 2007 programmes.
In August, a District Court in Texas fined Microsoft $200 million and passed an injunction on selling versions of Word that infringe on the patented technology.
Microsoft filed an appeal with the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington and requested that the injunction be delayed pending appeal, to which, the court agreed.