z4 Technologies awarded $133 million from Microsoft and Autodesk
Owner wins $133 million verdict for patent infringement
Industry: Computer Technology
Defendant: z4 Technologies
Plaintiff: Microsoft Corporation & Autodesk Inc.
Jurisdiction: Eastern District of Texas
Result: Verdict
Source: MSNBC.com, “Microsoft, Autodesk lose patent case.”
David Colvin is owner of z4 Technologies, a privately-held company and owner of two patents related to preventing the unauthorized use of software. In 2004, z4 asserted the two patents against software goliaths Microsoft Corporation and Autodesk by filing a patent infringement suit in federal court in the Eastern District of Texas.
In April 2006, the jury returned its verdict after deliberating continually for 19 hours, finding both Microsoft Corporation and Autodesk Inc., liable for patent infringement. The jury attributed $115M of the $133M verdict to Microsoft and $18M to Autodesk.
Microsoft, a software company headquartered in Redman, Washington, employs nearly 77,000 people worldwide. According to its website, Microsoft’s 2006 revenue was reported as $44.28 billion.
Autodesk, a computer software company of San Rafael, California, employs almost 5,000 people, and reported 2006 revenue topping $1.5 billion.
Tara's Take
Even jury verdicts are subject to review and appeal. Reports of the verdict indicate that claims of patent validity have been asserted against z4 which claim prior invention by Microsoft. Parties look to the federal courts in the Eastern District of Texas to adjudicate patent infringement suits because of the growing expertise in the district as well as the speed with which the cases tend to be resolved in those districts.
