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Microsoft and Eolas Technologies Inc. have settled their high-profile patent dispute over technology in Internet Explorer, according to a letter to Eolas shareholders from Mark Swords, the company's chief operating officer. The agreement resolves a case in which Microsoft was previously hit with a judgment of more than $500 million.
Click to read the letter to Eolas shareholders from COO Mark Swords (PDF, 2 pages).
However, the cost of the settlement to Microsoft isn't clear. In the letter (PDF, 2 pgs) Swords explained that the Eolas board anticipates paying a dividend to shareholders of between $60 and $72 per share. However, he wrote that the agreement prevents Eolas and Microsoft from disclosing the terms of the settlement. Eolas is privately held, and the letter does not disclose the total number of shares outstanding in the company.
Eolas, a University of California spin-off, had alleged that Internet Explorer violated its patent for accessing interactive content on Web pages.
Swords couldn't immediately be reached Thursday morning. A Microsoft spokesman didn't immediately comment. The resolution isn't a complete surprise. The companies agreed at the end of July to delay an impending trial so that they could engage in negotiations. A court hearing was scheduled for this morning in U.S. District Court in Illinois to update the judge on the status of the case.
More details to come.
Update, 3 p.m.: For the record, Microsoft spokesman Jack Evans confirmed via phone that a settlement has been reached in the case. I'll keep digging into this and post further details as they're available.
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I think taking a larger share of Facebook would be a good move. Facebook is preparing itself to be the platform of the web and this is exactly what MS needs. Also incorporating facebook services with outlook and hotmail could be extremely useful. Unfortunately, a complete buyout would put MS's name behind the service which could turn users away (as fickle as young people are) so, like the previous 250 million investment, it would need to be quiet."
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Posted by unregistered user at 9/2/07 9:16 p.m.
I hope this means that we won't have to "activate" controls in IE any more. That is one of the worst user experiences Microsoft offers.