Microsoft have scored a victory in its widespread legal fight over IT patents with Alcatel-Lucent in relation to speech recognition technology. AL said Microsoft was violating patents it owned in this domain through its Windows Media Player and Messenger systems. But a judge in San Diego yesterday ruled they were not.
This is relevant to us here in music-land, because, as previously reported, Microsoft recently lost a legal fight with AL over certain patents it owns relating to MP3 technologies - a decision which leaves Microsoft facing a bill of $1.52 billion, and could set a precedent where all sorts of other companies working with MP3 technologies could face similar litigation from AL. Microsoft hope that by winning other AL patent cases it can mount a stronger appeal to the MP3 patents ruling.
As previously reported, Microsoft argue AL's MP3 patents are irrelevant in its use of MP3 technology within the Windows Media Player because it had licenced the right to make its players MP3 compliant with the Fraunhofer Society, who are generally credited with creating the original MP3 technology.