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  1. #1
    Senior Member HAPPY2BME's Avatar
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    Microsoft Loses $290M in MS Office Patent Battle

    InfoPackets
    by John Lister

    Microsoft Loses $290M in MS Office Patent Battle

    Microsoft has failed in a Supreme Court bid to overturn a $290 million patent violation ruling. Not only is it the largest such award ever upheld, but this final ruling has significant consequences for patent law.
    http://www.infopackets.com/news/busines ... halted.htm

    The case involves XML documents, an advanced version of the HTML webpage code that allows data to be tagged to designate its content rather than just the way it appears on screen. The code makes it much easier to organize document content (for example, in a database).
    Microsoft Office XML Support Began with Office 2003

    Microsoft built support for reading XML documents into the 2003 and 2007 editions of Word, but was accused of using a patented method by Canadian tech firm i4i.
    http://www.infopackets.com/news/busines ... rosoft.htm

    Microsoft not only lost the resulting court case, but was fined a total of $290 million, made up of damages, legal costs and a multi-million dollar penalty for inappropriate courtroom behavior by its legal team.

    A series of appeals followed, working all the way up to the Supreme Court. As is required of such cases, the arguments in the appeals changed from the facts of the case to the way the law is interpreted.
    Burden Of Proof the Key Dispute

    In the Supreme Court hearing, the issue at stake was the way patents are granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

    The law says that once a patent is granted, the emphasis is on anyone found to have breached it to provide "clear and convincing" evidence that the USPTO was incorrect and the patent is invalid. That's similar to the level of proof required in a criminal case.

    Microsoft argued that the burden of proof should be on "the preponderance of evidence", which effectively means "more likely than not." That's the level of proof required in most civil cases. In particular, Microsoft noted this is the level of proof required to prove an alleged patent violation, creating what the company argues is an unfair balance.
    Microsoft Office Patent Violation: Verdict Unanimous

    The Supreme Court has now ruled against Microsoft by an 8-0 margin, with the ninth judge not taking part in the case because he owns Microsoft stock. The judges said that the existing rules are legal and could only be changed by Congress. (Source: wsj.com)
    http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2011/06/09/in- ... microsoft/

    The case had gone far beyond Microsoft and i4i, with numerous large and small companies providing evidence. It was widely believed that had Microsoft prevailed, patents would have become less powerful and the system would have become more favorable to those with the money to fight a lengthy court case.

    http://www.infopackets.com/news/courts/ ... battle.htm
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  2. #2
    Senior Member HAPPY2BME's Avatar
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    MS Office Pulled from Microsoft Store, Downloads Halted

    After a lengthy court battle that saw Microsoft cut down by tiny Canadian firm i4i, the software giant has agreed to remove the conflicting function from its popular Word program. As of this morning, the XML features at the heart of the great 2009 Word legal battle have been cut out.

    The ordeal began back in August, when a Texas federal judge found Microsoft guilty of infringing on small Toronto-based i4i's copyright of various XML functions found in the software company's Word, a prominent part of the very popular Office suite. Microsoft was given until October 10 to remove Word from store shelves or get the conflicting XML features out of the program, but this deadline was eventually delayed until January amidst appeals.

    Microsoft lost its final appeal just before Christmas, and at that point vowed it would comply with the original court order.

    MS Office Stock Dwindles Online MS Site

    Getting one's hands on a copy of Office on Microsoft's website yesterday afternoon was a very difficult thing to do. According to reports, only the $679 Office Ultimate edition was being listed as "in stock". All other versions of the suite were not available for purchase. (Source: eweek.com)
    http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Windows/Micros ... er-303396/

    Even Office 2003 Professional was pulled from Microsoft's MSDN and TechNet developer site.

    It's a surprising turn of events, given that at its last lost appeal Microsoft appeared ready to fully comply with the order. Impressions then were that adapting to it would not have a dramatic impact on the program's functionality or Microsoft's retail capacity.
    Microsoft Promises Short Absence for Office, Word

    Microsoft Office should be available again soon.

    "We've taken steps to comply with the court's ruling and we're introducing the revised software into the U.S. market," Microsoft noted in a statement yesterday. "This process will be imperceptible to the vast majority of customers, who will find both trial and purchase options readily available." (Source: cnet.com)

    In fact, Microsoft promises that most basic users of Office, including owners of home businesses and students, shouldn't notice much of a blip at all. "In the U.S., the Home & Student suite is already available for online purchase and download, and the other suites are available [through] retail outlets," the company said.
    MS Faces $290M in Damages, Continues Fight

    Despite promises that it would move on, reports state that Microsoft will continue its fight against i4i with another hearing in front of a three-judge panel soon. The company faces having to pay damages of $290 million to the Toronto firm.

    Source: http://www.infopackets.com/news/busines ... halted.htm
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  3. #3
    Senior Member HAPPY2BME's Avatar
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    related

    PERM Fake Job Ads defraud Americans to secure green cards fo

    VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCbFEgFa ... r_embedded

    Immigration attorneys from Cohen & Grigsby explains how they assist employers in running classified ads with the goal of NOT finding any qualified applicants, and the steps they go through to disqualify even the most qualified Americans in order to secure green cards for H-1b workers.

    See what Bush and Congress really mean by a "shortage of skilled U.S. workers." Microsoft, Oracle, Hewlett-Packard, and thousands of other companies are running fake ads in Sunday newspapers across the country each week.
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  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by HAPPY2BME
    related

    PERM Fake Job Ads defraud Americans to secure green cards fo

    VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCbFEgFa ... r_embedded

    Immigration attorneys from Cohen & Grigsby explains how they assist employers in running classified ads with the goal of NOT finding any qualified applicants, and the steps they go through to disqualify even the most qualified Americans in order to secure green cards for H-1b workers.

    See what Bush and Congress really mean by a "shortage of skilled U.S. workers." Microsoft, Oracle, Hewlett-Packard, and thousands of other companies are running fake ads in Sunday newspapers across the country each week.


    They want a standard to follow....well how about a ""white and black pin stripe pajama suit" and for jewelry "a ball and chain".........now that would be complying with the law and protecting American workers...



    Kathyet

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