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Microsoft Sues TiVo

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the i've-got-patent-pending dept.

doperative notes that "TiVo [is accused] of infringing four patents. Microsoft is asking that TiVo be barred from importing the digital-video recorders, which are primarily made in Mexico and sold in the U.S... The four patents in the ITC case relate to program schedules and selection, controlling the interface, and a way to restrict use of the DVR based on the program’s rating."

8 of 112 comments (clear)

  1. The Complaint and Patents by eldavojohn · · Score: 5, Informative

    "Sue" isn't the best choice of words here. It was an ITC Complaint that Microsoft hopes will result in the banning of TiVo imports from Mexico that allegedly infringe on Microsoft's patents. The patents are 5,585,838, 5,731,844, 6,028,604, and 5,758,258. You can find confirmation from Microsoft's mouth here.

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    My work here is dung.
    1. Re:The Complaint and Patents by OzPeter · · Score: 5, Informative

      You can find confirmation from Microsoft's mouth here.

      And in the winrumors link you supplied, it says that MS took this route ".. days after Tivo brought a lawsuit against close Microsoft partner, AT&T". Surprise!

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      I am Slashdot. Are you Slashdot as well?
    2. Re:The Complaint and Patents by LO0G · · Score: 5, Informative

      TFS leaves out one critical point in TFA. This complaint is in reaction to TiVo suing AT&T (and Microsoft since the software in question was written by Microsoft (MediaRoom)).

      This isn't as simple as "big bad Microsoft is suing poor little TiVo". According to TFA, this is just another volley in a protracted lawsuit.

    3. Re:The Complaint and Patents by AlwaysTheQuietOne · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I've looked at those patents. They're not "inventions", they're requirements documents. If that is the criteria, I should patent everything I ever developed requirements for and coded.

    4. Re:The Complaint and Patents by sortadan · · Score: 4, Interesting
      as a long time tivo customer, i feel comfortable saying go microsoft!

      tivo cares nothing for it's users, and the sooner they go out of business the better.

      once upon a time they had a great product, and they made it terrible by forcing annoying advertisements in all their menus, as soon as you pause anything, over live tv when a product is featured, and they don't provide digital over the air programming info for non-cable subscribers. 100% of customer contact goes through a call center which is powerless to perform all but the most basic tasks.

      /rant

  2. rating? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    >restrict use of the DVR based on the program’s rating.

    Isn't that what the rating was put there FOR? my god, how did they get a patent on that?!!?

  3. Re:Usual bullshit... by telemart73 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I respectfully disagree. Back in the day (2001?) I had a Microsoft UltimateTV for our satellite service. I felt the technology was considerably more sophisticated and easier to use than Tivo. IIRC, the user interface was much quicker and effective and it also had dual tuners. I believe MS stopped selling it less than a year after release for whatever reason. I kept using it as my preferred DVR until DirecTV released their HD DVR. Granted, these patents appear amazingly broad and I have personal issue with software patents like this, but saying MS cannot compete on merits is not true, at least in this case, IMHO.

  4. Re:Usual bullshit... by Eggplant62 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Yes, no clue from someone who has watched MS since the late '80s, when they were still producing Xenix, had hijacked IBM's DOS and called it their own, the DR DOS debacle, the bad treatment of WordPerfect, Novell, et alia, the payoffs to SCO, and now they're suing to help out their customer, AT&T in defense of a lawsuit in which MS has no firsthand involvement. Why did MS stop selling that TV? Could it be that they weren't seeing the customer demand for their own products that other companies like TiVO were? My disdainful comment stands, gents, sorry.