Microsoft went public on Thursday with a number of proposals designed to overhaul the U.S. patent system and make it better suited to the software industry. Microsoft general counsel Brad Smith presented Microsoft's proposed reforms during a day-long seminar at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research in Washington, D.C. Microsoft has a vested interest in patent reform. In 2004, the company filed 3,000 new patent applications.
At the same time, company officials acknowledge that Microsoft is among the largest targets of patent litigation in the country. Microsoft is spending close to $100 million annually to defend against an average of 35 to 40 simultaneous patent lawsuits, according to Microsoft's data. Microsoft is still fighting the $520 million jury verdict that was awarded to Eolas Technologies on the grounds that Microsoft had infringed its Web browser technology patents, for example.
News source: eWeek
At the same time, company officials acknowledge that Microsoft is among the largest targets of patent litigation in the country. Microsoft is spending close to $100 million annually to defend against an average of 35 to 40 simultaneous patent lawsuits, according to Microsoft's data. Microsoft is still fighting the $520 million jury verdict that was awarded to Eolas Technologies on the grounds that Microsoft had infringed its Web browser technology patents, for example.
News source: eWeek
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anybody knows this?
http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2005/0111ibmopens.html
IBM was granted 3,277 patents in 2004
Microsoft ranked 29th with 629 patents in 2004
It doesn't say how many they hold in total, but it must be staggering (as IBM has been at patent-collecting for a long, long time)
Here's my suggestion: No software patents.
i don't think that will happen, at least not it USA, its just another way of making money
A way for little companies get a lot of money from big companies, or big companies crush little companies so they don't get competition
i'm surprised that MS is doing this now, they probably should have started before, they could have saved themselves some troubles
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