News

Federal Appeals Court Upholds Ban on Microsoft Word Sales

Microsoft must stop selling its Microsoft Word software starting Jan. 11 if it can't remove patent-infringing technology by that time, according to a federal appeals court ruling released today.

The appeals court also upheld an approximate $290 million judgment against Redmond, plus interest and court costs.

The ruling stems from a lower-court case earlier this year in which a jury found Microsoft guilty of "willfully" infringing on a custom XML-related patent owned by Toronto-based i4i (United States Patent No. 5,787,449). The original judgment ordered Microsoft to stop selling Word products "that have the capability of opening a .XML, .DOCX, or .DOCM file ('an XML file') containing custom XML."

According to a statement released by Microsoft Director of Public Affairs Kevin Kutz, Microsoft has "been preparing for this possibility since the District Court issued its injuction...and have put the wheels in place to remove this little-used feature from [Microsoft Word 2007 and Microsoft Office 2007]."

"Therefore, we expect to have copies...with this feature removed available for U.S. sale and distribution by the injunction date."

"In addition," he continued, "the beta versions of Microsoft Word 2010...do not contain the technology covered by the injunction."

Kutz also stated that while the company is preparing to comply with the injunction, it is also considering an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

i4i did not release a statement regarding the ruling by press time.

About the Author

Becky Nagel serves as vice president of AI for 1105 Media specializing in developing media, events and training for companies around AI and generative AI technology. She also regularly writes and reports on AI news, and is the founding editor of PureAI.com. She's the author of "ChatGPT Prompt 101 Guide for Business Users" and other popular AI resources with a real-world business perspective. She regularly speaks, writes and develops content around AI, generative AI and other business tech. Find her on X/Twitter @beckynagel.

Featured

  • Microsoft Starts Countdown to Dynamics GP End-of-Support

    Dynamics GP, Microsoft's venerable enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution for midsized businesses, is set to lose support in four years.

  • Image of a futuristic maze

    The 2024 Microsoft Product Roadmap

    Everything Microsoft partners and IT pros need to know about major Microsoft product milestones this year.

  • Windows Recall Preview Starts Rolling Out with Windows 11 24H2

    Microsoft on Tuesday began rolling out Windows 11 version 24H2, describing the update as a "full OS swap that contains new foundational elements required to deliver transformational Al experiences and exceptional performance."

  • An image of planes flying around a globe

    2024 Microsoft Conference Calendar: For Partners, IT Pros and Developers

    Here's your guide to all the IT training sessions, partner meet-ups and annual Microsoft conferences you won't want to miss.