MS vs AT&T Case Stirs Software Patent Debate

Stormwave0 writes "A Microsoft appeal against a decision for AT&T and their speech recognition patent has reached the Supreme Court. AT&T has argued that they did not license software using the patent for sales overseas. Microsoft, in the original case, argued "that it wasn't really liable for infringing on AT&T's licensing rights because it only supplied the golden disk to the replicator one time, and that disk did not really contain software in a usable form anyway." With that argument rejected, the case has moved in an unexpected direction. The court is now debating whether or not software is actually patentable."

Somebody might want to tell Steve about this...

[Anonymous Coward]

Perhaps Steve Ballmer ought to have checked with legal before mouthing off about Linux and intellectual property yesterday?

Re:Somebody might want to tell Steve about this...

[jimstapleton]

Some people get the book thrown at them, this lawyer will probably get the chair...

Go Kennedy and Scalia!

[Veetox]

Apparently, their questions pointed MS lawyers in the right direction, according to TFA. Also, "...in a double wammy decision, the court finds that polygamy is legal." (Futurama... sorry, I just had to.)

who sez the supremes got no sense of humor:

[airdrummer]

"I hope we can continue calling it the golden disk," Justice Antonin Scalia said, when one justice blandly referred to it as the master disk. "It has a certain Scheherazade quality that really adds a lot of interest to this case." wash.post [washingtonpost.com]

Microsoft's plan for how it plays out

[Experiment 626]

AT&T: OMG! Microsoft copied out patented software.

Justices: Microsoft, how do you respond to these allegations?

Microsoft: Whatever. It's not like software is even patentable anyway.

Justices: You raise an important issue. Why do you feel software shouldn't be patentable?

Microsoft: Chewbacca is a Wookiee from the planet Kashyyyk. But Chewbacca lives on the planet Endor. Now think about it; that does not make sense!

Justices: WTF? That's the best reason you can come up with not to uphold software patents? This court rules that software patents are legal and enforceable!

Microsoft: Oh, no! Please don't fling me in the briar patch!