Microsoft Sues Tomtom, Asserts Linux Rights

Microsoft has filed a lawsuit against navigation device maker TomTom, claiming that its technology infringes Microsoft-owned patents. Some of the alleged infringement is a result of TomTom's use of Linux technology, Microsoft said.

Microsoft has claimed in the past that technology used in the main body of the Linux open source operating system, the 'kernel', infringes patents which it owns. It has not so far tested those claims in court.

It has now taken action against TomTom over eight patents which it owns, and a Microsoft lawyer said that three of those claims are related to TomTom's use of Linux.

"[The] TomTom implementation of the Linux kernel…infringes these claims," Microsoft's deputy general counsel for intellectual property Horacio Gutierrez told CNET News. "There are many flavors of Linux [and] many implementations of the Linux kernel. Cases such as these are very fact-specific."

Microsoft said in 2007 that Linux infringed 235 of its patents. General counsel Brad Smith said that 42 of those were violated by the kernel alone, while 65 were infringed by the graphical interface of Linux.

It is believed, though, that if the TomTom case goes to trial it will be the first test of Microsoft's claims in a court.

"We have taken this action after attempting for more than a year to engage in licensing discussions with TomTom," said Gutierrez in a statement. “We have an established intellectual property licensing program, and the patents involved in this case, relating to innovations in car navigation technology and other computing functionality, have been licensed by many others."

"In situations such as this, when a reasonable business agreement cannot be reached, we have no choice but to pursue legal action to protect our innovations and our partners who license them. Other companies that utilize Microsoft patents have licensed and we are asking TomTom to do the same," he said.