26 February 2007
Intellectual property | Patents | Information technology | MP3 | Bell Labs | Fraunhofer Society | Microsoft | Thomson Electronics
The MP3 imbroglio
Charles Goldfinger
When a few weeks ago I discussed the peculiar features of patent situation of MP3 and the general sense that the MP3 inventor, the Fraunhofer Society, and its licensee Thomson Electronics, left money on the table, I did not know that an astute player was already seeking to quantify and collect a large chunk of it.
On 22 February the US Federal Court in San Diego ruled against Microsoft and awarded Alcatel-Lucent, representing the Bell Labs, $1.52 billion in damages for infringement of MP3 patents filed by Bell Labs in the 1990s.
This is the largest amount ever awarded in an information technology patent infringement case. And, if the award is upheld, it will open a real...
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