Microsoft asks appeals court to reconsider

SOFTWARE MONOPOLIST Microsoft has asked the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to hold an en banc review of its decision last month in a patent infringement lawsuit filed by i4i Systems over its custom XML feature in Microsoft Word.

In a December ruling, the appellate court upheld a Texas District Court jury verdict and judge's rulings in favour of i4i.

That decision included a permanent injunction to prevent the Vole from continuing to sell the patent-infringing Word 2007 and Office 2007 software in the US from today, 11 January. Microsoft has released new versions of the offending products that don't contain the infringing features.

In a statement, Microsoft public relations spinner Kevin Kutz said that the initial appeals court decision could set a dangerous precedent.

He claimed, "The petition details significant conflicts we believe the December 22 decision creates with established precedents governing trial procedure and the determination of damages, and we are concerned that the decision weakens judges' authority to apply appropriate safeguards in future patent trials."

Loudon Owen, i4i chairman, responded by saying that the company had expected Microsoft to petition for the full court to review the decision.

"We look forward to continuing to build i4i's business now that Microsoft is obligated to comply with the terms of the injunction," Owen said. "I4i stands ready to work with the wide range of customers that require this custom XML functionality."

Observers also had expected the Vole to petition for an en banc review because that doesn't cost it much and it can still appeal to the US Supreme Court if that review is denied or it loses again.

A decision in favour of Microsoft could also let it off the hook, at least for awhile, on having to pay the $300 million (£185 million) in damages that the trial court awarded to i4i. µ