April 30, 2007
SCOTUS Sides With Microsoft
In a ruling that could save Microsoft billions of dollars, the Supreme Court today found that the Redmond, Wash.-based software goliath is not liable in a patent dispute with AT&T.
The two companies were battling over computers running Windows software, with AT&T alleging that Microsoft infringed on speech-coding technology. Implications of the case extended to all copies of Windows manufactured abroad; AT&T had staked a claim on all foreign computers using the digital speech system.
Justice John Paul Stevens was the lone dissenter in the 7-1 opinion [PDF]. (Chief Justice John Roberts didn't participate in the case because he owns Microsoft stock.)
In the majority opinion, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote, "The presumption that United States law governs domestically but does not rule the world applies with particular force in patent law."
Posted at 2:54 PM
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