Alcatel-Lucent has begun court proceedings for its lawsuit against Microsoft, complaining that Microsoft’s Xbox game systems violates one of the company’s 1993 patents “relating to the code for generating video frames.”
The partnership says it plans to demand $1.50 USD for “every alleged misuse of the patent” but it is not clear what is considered a misuse. At worst, the suit could apply to all Xboxs and Xbox 360s ever sold.
Microsoft has so far disputed the claims and also says “that four fifths of the claim applies to video frames in Windows Media Player, which is available as a separate, free download and so wouldn’t generate royalties for Alcatel-Lucent.”
Alcatel-Lucent began its set of lawsuits in 2002 but had them split up and separated by technologies. In 2003, the company won a $1.5 billion USD verdict from MP3 audio patents but the verdict was overturned this year. Earlier this month however, the company won $368 million USD from Microsoft over patents relating to touchscreen technology.
In response to the suits, Microsoft has filed a countersuit accusing Alcatel-Lucent “of violating nine patents relating to interfaces and messages on both computers and fax machines.”
Result for: alcatel
In the third of five lawsuits brought forth against Microsoft by Alcatel-Lucent SA, a federal jury has ruled that the Microsoft Xbox 360 console does not violate any patents held my Alcatel-Lucent and threw the case out.
The technologies company had wanted $420 million USD in damages. On the other side however, Microsoft had counter-sued for $11.5 million USD in damages, claiming that Alcatel-Lucent had infringed one of their patents.
The jury ruled that “one of Microsoft’s patents was invalid and found that Alcatel-Lucent didn’t violate another four of the company’s patents.”
Last year, in the first of the five trials, a jury ruled that Microsoft’s Windows Media Player “infringed Alcatel-Lucent’s patents for the MP3 digital-audio standard” and awarded the latter company a huge $1.52 billion USD settlement. The verdict however is now on appeal and it appears the damages award will be lessened.
Two months ago, another federal jury awarded Alcatel-Lucent $368 million USD for “Microsoft’s infringement of its patents for touch-screen form entry and use of a computer stylus.”
