Microsoft asked to pony up US$ 90 million for patent infringement
And it’s another case of patents gone wild. Microsoft is the target of this infringement lawsuit, where they’re being asked to pay US$ 90 million for using patented technology in the Halo games, as well as both Xbox consoles. The funny part is those patents were only purchased for US$ 200,000.
Details after the link.
You know what I think of your patents?
And it’s another case of patents gone wild. Microsoft is the target of this infringement lawsuit, where they’re being asked by PalTalk Holdings to pay them US$ 90 million for using patented technology in the Halo games, as well as both Xbox consoles.
The funny part is that PalTalk purchased those patents for only US$ 200,000. Microsoft’s lawyer is using this fact to diminish their multi-million dollar claim, saying “The patents aren’t worth much. Certainly not $90 million.”
PalTalk maintains the value of the patents, saying that MPath, the company they bought the patents from, was “a pioneer in the online video industry in the area of real-time, multiplayer online games. They claim that:
Microsoft had many meetings with MPath regarding their technology, and Microsoft found the technology to be very valuable. […] Microsoft decided to go in another direction and work with another company. Obviously, this was upsetting to PalTalk and its employees.
Microsoft, on the other hand, claims that while it did review MPath inventions, they “don’t cover the way the Halo games work” since the patents are reportedly based on old dial-up net communications.
More patent madness:
