Microsoft Windows 7 and Xbox 360 buyers in Germany may soon find it difficult to purchase a copy of either system after a court ordered Microsoft in violation of a patent held by Motorola Mobility. The court order demands that Microsoft pull both products from store shelves until an agreement can be reached with Motorola.
The move to pull Windows 7 and Xbox 360 products will not go into motion immediately as Microsoft has been granted a preliminary injunction against Motorola which prevents the company from enforcing the German court order.
Microsoft was ruled to be in violation of a patent owned by Motorola Mobility that deals with video-compression software that is used in Windows 7 and Xbox systems. The judge found that Microsoft had breached an agreement put in place with Motorola, however a separate investigation has been launched to determine if Motorola is over-charging Microsoft for use of the patent.
Microsoft is expected to officially appeal the original court-order today.
This case is just one more in an ever increasing patent war which has pitted the likes of Microsoft, Apple , Google, Samsung, Qualcomm and others against one another through the use of thousands of patents. In an effort to stifle competition firms have been spending billions of dollars to buy up patents from competing firms, then turning around and using those patents to earn royalties and in some drastic cases to have products pulled from store shelves around the world.
Do you think patent laws need to be reformed to end the constant fighting from within the tech industry?
