According to The Toronto Star, there seems to be an endgame to the Microsoft vs. i4i patent fight. Here’s why Microsoft wants to keep i4i from cashing in:
The hour-long hearing before eight Supreme Court justices delved into the intricacies and the history of the U.S. patent system. Chief Justice John Roberts recused himself from the hearing since he owned more than $100,000 (U.S.) in Microsoft stock in 2009.
Microsoft wants the high court to make it easier for companies to challenge the validity of other firms’ patents. The current standard requires a defendant to prove by “clear and convincing evidence” that a plaintiff’s patent is invalid.
Here’s what i4i had to say:
Lawyers for i4i and the Obama administration argued, however, that there’s little point in granting patents to inventors if corporations can simply infringe upon them with impunity.
“It’s a marathon, not a sprint, but I think it went very well,” Loudon Owen, i4i’s chairman, said on the steps of the iconic Supreme Court building following the hearing.
“The bottom line is whether there’s a robust patent system, and whether or not if you get a patent, it means something. If the law goes the way Microsoft wants it to, it will mean it will be very easy to invalidate patents, which will make it hard to justify why one seeks a patent in the first place.”
Now there’s only going to be 8 rather than 9 judges ruling on this, so this could end up in a tie decision. If that happens, then Microsoft loses. So this is an “all-in” moment for the software giant. Meanwhile, for i4i, a win would validate that Microsoft ripped them off. Expect a decision sometime in June.
i4i Wins Against Microsoft In Patent Suit
Posted in Commentary with tags i4i, Microsoft, Patents on June 9, 2011 by itnerdStaff at Toronto company i4i are likely having beers tonight as the U.S. Supreme court has shot down Microsoft’s appeal which clears the way for a $290 million pay day:
“It’s hard to expand and grow your business when people feel it’s all under a cloud,” i4i chairman Louden Owen said Thursday.
“Now we think the fields are open and we can plough ahead,” Owen said from Toronto. “So in terms of the validity of our patent, the case is closed.”
Now i4i will be able to promote and sell its technology saying that it has been validated by the U.S. Supreme Court, he said.
Clearly this is a major victory for i4i, and perhaps this will spur patent reform so that we don’t have to see battles like this over and over again. Also, said patent reform might stop the nonsense that we see between companies like Apple and Samsung. Wouldn’t that be something?
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