MEDIA RELEASE PR36124
Microsoft willfully infringed i4i patent - Permanent injunction against Word - (i4i v Microsoft Case
summary)
TORONTO, Ontario, Sept. 15 /CNW-AsiaNet/ --
On August 11, 2009, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Tyler Division, the
Honorable Leonard Davis issued a Final Judgment in i4i v. Microsoft Corporation. The Final Judgment
included an award in excess of $290 million USD in favor of i4i and a Permanent Injunction against Defendant
Microsoft selling its flagship Word product in the USA unless it removes custom XML which infringes i4i's U.S.
Patent No. 5,787,449.
Subsequent to the Final Judgment, Microsoft filed an Emergency Motion
that claimed it may have to stop selling not only Word but also its entire
software suite of programs called Office in the USA until it could redesign
its products to remove custom XML. It further stated that its distributors,
which include retailers such as Best Buy and OEM's such as HP and Dell, face
the imminent possibility of a massive disruption in their sales. Each of Dell
and HP also claimed a heavy burden if the injunction proceeded and filed
amicus briefs with the Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals granted a stay
of the injunction pending appeal. In addition, the Court of Appeals scheduled
the appeal to be heard in Washington D.C. on September 23, 2009.
Loudon Owen, Chairman of i4i, says, "We firmly believe that the U. S.
District Court made the right decision on the merits of the case, and we are
confident that i4i will prevail on the appeal by Defendant Microsoft. This is
a vital case for inventors and entrepreneurial companies who, like i4i, are
damaged by the willful infringement of their patents by competitors;
particularly competitors as large and powerful as Microsoft."
Mr. Owen continues, "We do not have the gargantuan financial resources of
Microsoft, but i4i has the protection of fairness under the U.S. justice
system. Microsoft is not above the law. It cannot privately expropriate i4i's
patented invention."
i4i is a global technology company headquartered in Toronto, Canada. i4i
LP is a licensing entity, affiliated with i4i Inc., which owns patent No.
5,787,449 issued by the United States Patent Office in 1998.
For more information, selected court documents in i4i v. Microsoft can be
SOURCE: McLean Watson; i4i
CONTACT: Loudon Owen
lowen(at)mcleanwatson.com or
(416) 307-3271;
Melony Jamieson
melony(at)getitdone.ca or
(416) 518-6355
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