Microsoft Gets Delay on Word Ban

Microsoft will be allowed to continue selling Word in the US next month, pending an appeal against the patent-infringement injunction awarded against it.

A Court in Texas ordered Microsoft to cease selling Word from next month and pay pay $200m (£120m) damages, having found that the giant had infringed XML-related patents owned by i4i. Microsoft has now been granted a stay on that injunction, allowing it to proceed with a Federal Court appeal against the ruling.

Microsoft spokesman Kevin Kutz issued a bullish statement: “We are happy with the result and look forward to presenting our arguments on the main issues on 23 September.”

But i4i said Microsoft was prunning scared: “Microsoft’s scare tactics about the consequences of the injunction cannot shield it from the imminent review of the case by the Federal Circuit Court of Appeal on the 23 September appeal,” said i4i chairman Loudon Owen.

The suit dates back to 2007, when i4i charged that Microsoft had violated a 1998 patent for handling embedded format codes in XML documents. The company has received support from partners HP and Dell in court.