Volume IV

Issue : 2: January 26, 2006

• Importation Held to Infringe Copyright Despite the Absence of Initial Infringement
• Nevada Court Rules Google Cache Feature Constitutes "Fair Use"
• Google Resists U.S. Government Motion to Compel Disclosure of Search Information
• Yahoo Loses Nazi Memorabilia Free Speech Case
• Ontario Court Finds Collaboration Necessary to Facilitate Document Production in the Electronic Age
• U.K. Plans to Host Global Online Gambling Summit
• Korea Will Not Prosecute Personal Downloaders
• Australian Online Bookie First to Get Licence
• Utah Fines B.C. Based Pornography Website
• California Court of Appeal Upholds Microsoft Class Action Settlement
• Alberta Court of Appeal Asserts that Corporations Cannot Hide Behind Privacy Laws
• U.S. Patent Office Upholds Microsofts File System Patents
• Sony Obtains $6 Million in Statutory Damages for Mod Chip Sales

Home > Volume IV > Issue 2: January 26, 2006 > U.S. Patent Office Upholds Microsofts File System Patents

U.S. Patent Office Upholds Microsofts File System Patents

Microsoft has prevailed in a two year battle with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) which saw two patents to its File Allocation Table (FAT) technology challenged in patent re-examination proceedings. Federal examiners announced January 10th, that the two patents met the tests for novelty and non-obviousness, and were thus patentable. Microsoft has licensed the technology to others and it is used in many of its operating systems as well as in removable flash memory cards and digital media products such as cameras.

The proceedings were commenced following a request in April 2004 by the Public Patent Foundation, a not-for-profit legal services organization representing a public interest in the patent system. The group cited prior art and alleged that Microsoft was not entitled to the patents. Aligned with the Public Patent Foundation in this issue is the Free Software Foundation (FSF), a proponent of Linux and other software distributed under the Foundation’s General Public License (GPL). The FSF is concerned that Microsoft will seek royalties from companies that sell and support Linux as some Linux products use FAT technology to exchange data with Windows. Software cannot be distributed under the GPL if it contains patented technology requiring royalty payments.

For additional information, visit:

http://news.com.com/2100-1012_3-6025447.html

For additional information on the Free Software Foundation, visit:

http://www.fsf.org/

For Microsoft licensing information, visit:

http://www.microsoft.com/mscorp/ip/tech/fat.asp