Microsoft's patent lust means quantity over quality (even copying other people, then patenting that copy/ripoff)

Summary: Microsoft sued for patent infringement over its useless gimmick (from a company it acquired and then scuttled)

Microsoft wants to be thought of as an innovative company, but what happens when the USPTO has evidence of willful infringement, followed by Microsoft trying to take credit for other people's work?

Filed in the Southern District of New York was a lawsuit against Microsoft, which we saw covered in two sites. The first one said:

Microsoft has encountered a legal glitch in the development of its HoloLens headset. Connecticut-based company HoloTouch has filed a patent-infringement lawsuit against Redmond for “willfully” ignoring its holographic imaging patents.

The two patents in the dispute date back more than 10 years and Holotouch claims that Microsoft had known about them for years before implementing them into its mixed-reality headset.

Another report said:

It looks as though Microsoft has a bit of a legal situation on its hands in regards to its HoloLens technology.

The software giant stands accused of willfully infringing upon patents held by Connecticut-based HoloTouch. Recent court filings in the Southern District of New York reveal allegations of infringement on at least two holographic imaging tech patents dating back as far as 2006. Making matters worse, it appears that Microsoft even acknowledged HoloTouch's patents as "prior art" in a 2013 patent filing of its own.

The technology in question covers a variety of touchless controls for a range of industries, including "ATMs, automotive equipment, aviation devices, consumer electronics, gaming equipment, home appliances, kiosks, leisure products, medical and military equipment."

This is looking pretty bad for Microsoft as it suggests more than just willful infringement; it's much worse. So when Microsoft claims that other companies do not "respect IP" (or something along those lines/lies) be sure to point out this case. ⬆