Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Microsoft patent rejected for now

Associated Press

SEATTLE — The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has preliminarily rejected a Microsoft Corp. patent on a system for recognizing computer files, a victory for “open source” advocates who believe computer programs and improvements should be freely shared.

Microsoft now has the right to appeal — and has vowed to do so — setting the stage for what could be long-running negotiations.

Still, Greg Aharonian, a patent expert who runs the Internet Patent News Service, said he thinks there is a good chance the patent will end up being rejected, because there is so much evidence the technology in question is widely used. “It’s like getting a patent on cheesecake,” he said.

The patent, which Microsoft was granted in 1996, has to do with technology that lets people create and find files on a computer using easy-to-remember names.