Download the new Switched app for your iPhone

Skip to Content

Autoblog's live coverage of the 2010 Detroit Auto Show
AOL Tech

Filed under: Audio, News, Microsoft

Judge throws out $1.5 billion MP3 patent ruling against Microsoft

Microsoft MoneyRemember back in February when a federal jury found that Microsoft owed Alcatel-Lucent $1.5 billion dollars for violation of 2 MP3-related patents held by that company? Yeah, looks like Microsoft isn't going to have to pay up after all.

A federal judge has reversed the decision, after finding that Lucent did not solely own the rights to one of the patents, and that Microsoft had properly licensed that technology from the co-owner of the patent.

And the other patent? Yeah, the judge ruled that Microsoft simply hadn't infringed on that one.

Alctael-Lucent plans to appeal the latest decision. While the lengthy appeals process could get rather expensive, it's not likely to approach $1.5 billion any time soon, so what does the company have to lose, besides face? And some money. And time.
jobs & resumes
Mac Support Technician

Kerdan - Cambridge, MA (2 weeks ago)

See More Relevant Jobs ›

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Featured Time Waster

Level Up! A platform-hopping RPG Time-Waster

I don't know if this is a labor of love or merely the brainchild of four very gifted games designers, but Level Up is a really weird mash-up of gaming elements that you have probably never seen in a Flash game before. Let's start with the premise itself: Groundhog Day meets Memento. The game experience revolves around 'days': you explore the world and the clock slowly ticks towards the evening. You bounce around picking up gems and talking to the denizens of 'Level Upland'. Eventually you feel tired and head back to ...

View more Time Wasters


Follow us on Twitter!

More Tech Coverage

Joystiq

TUAW

DailyFinance

Autoblog

Urlesque

Engadget

WoW

Switched.com

FanHouse