14 DAY TRIAL // Rob Morris, a developer who once contacted Microsoft to sell one of its browser technologies, claims the Redmond-based software giant stole his idea and is now making millions of dollars every year with a patent that requires every single Android device manufacturer to pay royalties for using it.
Morris created what was being calls V_Graph, a technology they described as “web widgets” and which could integrate web content into custom applications for an improved browsing experience.
The developer himself contacted Microsoft in 1996 trying to sell his tech to the software giant, but Redmond quickly turned down the offer. Soon after that, however, Microsoft came up with a very similar technology and filed for a patent, which was finally granted in 2000 with number 6,105,510.
A few years after that, the tech which was initially used on Internet Explorer 3.0 became a common feature on other applications too, but also on Android devices, whose manufacturers need to pay Microsoft royalties for using the same system.
Morris has now launched a petition on Indiegogo to ask for crowdfunding in order to fight Microsoft's patent in court and ask for a re-examination. That's not because he wants to get some money from Redmond, but because he feels that Android users are all affected by this case because device manufacturers are obviously raising prices as a result of the royalties they need to pay.
“We want to defeat that patent. It will run until 2017, so there is no time to waste. It's hard to recover the past, but we can work together to stop them from charging for this. Right now, for example, they collect billions of dollars from Android users, with their patent portfolio licensing machine,” Morris explained.
“An inter partes reexamination, allows us to object, and to stay in the fight and counter Microsoft's arguments. This is our stretch goal, and it allows us to get ‘in the room’ and make our case.”
He, however, admits that even though he might raise the necessary funds to challenge this patent in court, Microsoft might after all win the case. Redmond has lots of money, he said, but also skilled lawyers that could turn everything in their favor.
“We think this bad patent currently affects every smart phone and tablet user in America today. It was annoying when Microsoft started giving this technology away as part of their operating system, but that only hurt my company. Now, they are making billions licensing their patent portfolio, and it makes us mad to think they are charging Android users for this,” Morris pointed out.
Microsoft is yet to publicly respond to these claims, but we've contacted the company asking for comments, so we'll update the article when we get an answer.
Update: Business Insider also has some information on this, with Morris pointing out that “his business was crushed” when Microsoft developed its own similar tech. “It was like the Wild West,” Morris was quoted as saying.