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Microsoft sues TomTom over Linux patents

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Kernel,
Patents,
Court,
Gps

Ina Fried CNET News

Published: 26 Feb 2009 12:26 GMT

Microsoft has filed two separate patent-infringement actions against TomTom, including claims relating to the GPS navigation company's use of the Linux kernel.

In complaints filed on Wednesday before the US District Court in Washington and the International Trade Commission, Microsoft is alleging infringement of eight patents. While five of the patents relate to car-navigation systems specifically, three of the claims pertain to file-management techniques used in the Linux kernel, Microsoft deputy general counsel Horacio Gutierrez, told ZDNet UK's sister site CNET News.com.

It is the "TomTom implementation of the Linux kernel that infringes these claims", Gutierrez said on Wednesday. "There are many flavours of Linux [and] many implementations of the Linux kernel. Cases such as these are very fact-specific."

While the software maker has asserted for years that Linux infringes on its patents, this appears to be the first time Microsoft has made the claim in court. Back in 2007, Microsoft made public its claim that Linux violates 235 of Microsoft's patents.

Since then, Microsoft has struck a number of patent licensing deals, most notably with Novell, that provide signing companies with patent protection against Linux claims. Microsoft also announced a year ago that it would not sue individual open-source developers, though it said it retained the right to sue companies over their use of Linux.

In an interview, Gutierrez said the software giant has been trying to start licensing talks with TomTom for more than a year. "They basically never were prepared to have a discussion with us with respect to licensing terms," Gutierrez said.

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The court filings come a day after Dutch-based TomTom posted a €989m (£875m) fourth-quarter loss, dragged down by its purchase of Tele Atlas. The company told Reuters on Thursday that it rejected Microsoft's claims and would vigorously defend itself in the lawsuit.

Although Microsoft has been on the receiving end of many patent complaints, this is only the third patent case Microsoft has taken to court. Last year it sued Taiwanese mouse-maker Primax, before subsequently settling. It also had a dispute with Belkin in 2006, which was eventually settled as well.

Microsoft already has deals with several other GPS system makers, including Pioneer, Alpine and Kenwood, as part of its efforts to license its technology, a push that began back in 2003. "All of these patents have been licensed before by many other companies," Gutierrez said. "We are asking TomTom to do what other companies have done and take a licence."

The federal lawsuit seeks damages for the past infringement, while the ITC case is aimed at blocking future imports of infringing patents, Microsoft said.

"By filing both actions simultaneously we are seeking to both recoup past losses and stop continued infringing activity, which would thus minimise potential future losses," Microsoft said in a statement. ITC cases typically take about 15 months, Microsoft said, while federal patent suits can take much longer.

Credit: Microsoft sues TomTom for patent infringement from CNET News