In what seems to be an extra ordinary turn of events, Microsoft has been barred from selling Word 2003 and Word 2007 from 11 Jan onwards. Reason? Well, as per reports, Microsoft has been asked by a US court to pay $290 million in damages to one Toronto based i4i Inc. For infringing i4i’s patent for custom XML currently being used by MS Word.

Now thats something new. The ban comes, reports say, because of patent infringement violations. Loudon Owen, i4i chairman and its largest share-holder, told the Canadian media that the court order is “vindication for i4i and a war cry for talented inventors whose patents are infringed” by bigger companies. Owen hopes the publicity it has received due to this win will help his company to grow big time and is expecting an onslaught of business.

Well, someone’s gain, and someone’s loss. It will be interesting to see what Microsoft does from here on. Our take, we might see another acquisition by MS. Only the future will tell. Wait and watch …

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