Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is apparently the latest target among large tech companies in a patent-infringement dispute with Vringo Inc. (NYSE:VRNG), as the latter has filed a lawsuit against Redmond for infringing the very same patents that got Vringo a $16 million award from Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) last year.
Last year alone, Vringo Inc. successfully leveraged these two patents into successful lawsuits against Google, AOL Inc., IAC (NASDAQ:IACI) and Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) to the tune of $30 million combined. – though the company sought more than $700 million. Vringo was pursuing royalty payments from Google, but Google is not only been contesting that, but it is requesting a re-examination of the patents by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Patent litigation has seemed to become a hobby of many tech companies in recent years, but Microsoft Corporation is one of the leaders in patent possession – according to a recent research report by the Brookings Institution – which might make it a prime target for patent challenges. Vringo Inc. is looking for monetary damages for the infringement plus any past and future royalty payments for using the technology.
In the Brookings Institution report, Microsoft Corporation was deemed one of the five most innovative companies in terms of patent creation between 2007 and 2012, joining IBM (NYSE:IBM), Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC), Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) and Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ:MU). The research also found that nearly two-thirds of patents created during this time were created in 20 metropolitan areas which accounted for one-third of the U.S. population.
Does the “most innovative” companies list surprise you? What is the bigger surprise, that Microsoft Corporation is on the list, or that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is not among the top-five? And what are your thoughts about this lawsuit brought by Vringo Inc.? Let us know your comments below.
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