Microsoft pays Timeline $5M in Patent Settlement

Craig69 writes "A US SEC report states that Timeline's patent infringement lawsuit filed against Microsoft, as owner of ProClarity, in United States District Court for the Western District of Washington has been settled. Microsoft has paid US$5M to Timeline in exchange for a license to a number of patents."

Comments

Yes, but who really won here?

[skoaldipper]

$5M to a timeline?

dM/dt = $5

ah I see

[rucs_hack]

Well, I wish I had some patents, since it appears that nowadays in the US all you need to make it rich is a half baked poorly specified and over broad patent or two.

There's no way the patent troll is going to be going away, not while there are potentially so many billions to be made from having IP on paper.

I can also see why other countries, like China and India, would have reason to be positively delighted at this mess. After all, while the US is circling the IT drain and losing impetus on innovation due to the all singing all dancing patent, they can get on with actually doing new stuff.

45% attorneys fees??

[maroberts]

I am in the wrong business.

I don't think Timeline made any money. In this it indicates that Timeline (and MS) paid $2.5m jury costs, so it looks like MS coughed up $5mill to feed the lawyers and pay Timelines expenses.

Here's how things work

[PinkyDead]

1. Company A (Microsoft) infringes on Company B's (Timeline's) Patent
2. Company B details the infringement to Company A
3. Company A either accepts the claim and pays a settlement
        or
      Company A contests the claim and wins or loses.

Now if a company like Microsoft can understand this process, why can't a company like Microsoft understand this process?

Re:Make preparations for hypocrisy!

[FredDC]

Why do I get the feeling Microsoft is only paying up to prove a point to others?

"See, we pay our protection money! Why won't you?"

If they weren't trying to get others to pay for their patents, I doubt they would've paid a cent to Timeline! They would've gone to court and had their lawyers tear Timeline's arguments to pieces. Or they simply would've bought Timeline...

bit more background

[ThirdPrize]

Not quite sure what is going on but M$ brought a company that was being done for patent infringement at the time.

Re:Make preparations for hypocrisy!

[h4rm0ny]

At the risk of "you must be new here" comments, I think you have underestimated the intelligence of the /. crowd. I think most of us can recognize that stupid patents are a threat to us all. Microsoft-haters might take some satisfaction in seeing Microsoft cut itself on its own weapons, but most will draw the line at saying the patent action is a good thing, because we don't know who might get hit by it next.

I'm seeing more and more actual patent actions recently. I've read that one of the reasons a patent war hasn't kicked off is because everything was on hold while everyone was trying to get the Europeans to enact the same patent laws and approve the queue of US patents over here, thus increasing the size of the prize to be divvied up. Looks like that might not happen now, though, so it could be that things are heating up partly because of that? That and Microsoft looking at more desparate ways of putting down Linux.

Re:Make preparations for hypocrisy!

[morgan_greywolf]

No way. Timeline is the worst kind of a bottom feeder in the industry. They are patent trolls.

Re:Make preparations for hypocrisy!

[Jennifer York]

That was my first thought. But at $5M this is such a tiny sum of money that MS simply had to sign up. This avoids an RIM v. NTP scenario and is bargain. Also they acheive the "See, we pay our protection money! Why won't you?" bonus points...