The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) this week dealt Microsoft a blow that may not be a knock-out punch, but comes pretty close to hobbling its argument that Internet Explorer (IE) does not infringe on a Web browser patent because prior art makes the patent invalid.
The USPTO reviewed and reaffirmed the patent owned by the University of California and licensed exclusively to Eolas Technologies. The patent, known as the 906 patent after its official patent number, 5,838,906, covers a method used to call up interactive applications, or plug-ins, within a browser.
Microsoft will have to redesign IE, the most widely used Internet browser by far, if it loses the suit and cannot come to a licensing agreement with Eolas. The university and Eolas first sued Microsoft in 1999 and won the civil case in 2003, with the jury awarding Eolas $520.6 million in back royalty fees and interest. Microsoft appealed, but a Chicago District Court upheld the verdict in January 2004, and also banned the company from distributing the infringing. That injunction was stayed during the appeals process.
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