BetaNews: Microsoft's FAT Patents Upheld

"Ending a two-year battle over the FAT file system, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has reversed a non-final ruling from October and upheld Microsoft's patents on the technology. Despite the prior setbacks, Microsoft had remained steadfast that it would be victorious all along.

"In June of 2004, the USPTO agreed to review the patent after questions arose surrounding its validity. A group known as the Public Patent Foundation disputed Microsoft's claims to FAT in April 2004, saying it had become ubiquitous as a format and found in many devices..."

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Related Stories:

• eWeek: Lawyers: Microsoft's FAT Patent Defeat 'Significant'(Oct 04, 2004)
• PUBPAT: At PUBPAT's Request, Patent Office Rejects Microsoft's FAT Patent(Sep 30, 2004)
• IT-Analysis: Patents and the Threat To Open Source(Jul 04, 2004)
• LinuxInsider: FAT Patent: Threat to the Free and Developing Worlds?(Jun 23, 2004)