Microsoft, Dell ordered to pay Alcatel-Lucent for patent infringement

05 April 2008

Mumbai: A US jury has asked Microsoft Corporation to pay Alcatel-Lucent, the world's largest supplier of telecommunications equipment, $368 million in damages for violating two patents relating to the user interface in its software.

The federal court jury in San Diego also said personal computer major Dell Inc also infringed one patent and owed Alcatel-Lucent $51,000.

Alcatel-Lucent had sought about $1.75 billion in damages from Microsoft and Dell for violation of its patents.

Alcatel-Lucent had sought $1.5 billion in damages from Microsoft for violation of four patents. However, the jury found Microsoft did not infringe on Alcatel's video decoding technology patent.

The fourth patent in the lawsuit was against Dell Inc, which was found not to have been infringed.

The patents originally belonging to Lucent Technologies which the Paris-based Alcatel SA acquired in 2006.