Monday, April 18, 2011

Microsoft (MSFT) Patent Battle Has Companies, Industries Choosing Sides

The battle by Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) to make it easier to challenge whether or not a patent is valid or not is heading to the Supreme Court, as various companies and industries line up on both sides of the issue in support of or against the case.

Backing Microsoft are many in the tech sector, including Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO), eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY), Facebook Inc. and Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC), while lining up against them are 3M Co. (NYSE:MMM), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) and General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE), along with branded drug companies like Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and Merck (NYSE:MRK).

Companies supporting Microsoft said in a brief, "Those allegations are often based on invalid patents, but they are nonetheless costly and risky to defend, in part because of the clear-and-convincing standard."

Companies opposing Microsoft noted, "Inventors and society would suffer from such a rule, which would simultaneously reduce the rewards of innovation by weakening property rights while increasing the costs of innovation."

Banks and other financial companies also support Microsoft, as they are often recipients of lawsuits in regard to patents as well.

No comments: