Patent Law

The following is excerpted from a January 20, 2010 article by Roger Cheng of Dow Jones Newswires published at CNNMoney.com:

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) is suing TiVo Inc. (TIVO) as part of a broader attempt to provide legal cover for customer AT&T Inc. (T).

Microsoft filed a suit late Tuesday against TiVo in a San Francisco federal court, claiming that the Alviso, Calif., maker of digital video recorders illegally uses technology related to purchasing and delivering video and the ability to display programming information. Both are seen as an attempt to counter an earlier suit filed by TiVo against AT&T, which uses Microsoft's technology in its television service. Microsoft on Friday requested to intervene in the case on AT&T's behalf.

The latest legal salvo comes a few months after TiVo launched its own strike against AT&T and Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ), alleging that their video services illegally use its TV "time-warping" technology in their digital video recorders. AT&T's DVRs are built off of Microsoft's Mediaroom software.

TiVo hasn't been shy about using the courtroom to protect its intellectual property. The company also has a long-running dispute with Dish Networks Corp. ( DISH) and sister company Echostar Corp. (SATS) over the same DVR technology. The company has agreements with most of the cable companies and DirecTV Group Inc. ( DTV).

TiVo Chief Executive Tom Rogers said earlier this month at an investor conference that he expects a decision in the near term in the long-running dispute between his company and Dish and Echostar.

Read the full article here.