Microsoft wins '...is typing a message' IM patent

Microsoft has won a patent for an instant messaging feature that notifies users when the person they are communicating with is typing a message.

The patent encompasses a feature that's not only on Microsoft's IM products but also on those of its rivals AOL and Yahoo!.

Patent No. 6,631,412 could serve as a weapon in Microsoft's battle for IM market share. Microsoft is investing heavily in IM as a springboard for selling communication software to businesses. Later this year, Microsoft plans to launch Live Communications Server, a software product that will initially offer IM for the enterprise and then expand into internet voice calling and video services.

The software giant currently offers MSN Messenger as a free download from the web, as well as Windows Messenger, the IM client for its XP operating system. Both services have amassed millions of users.

Having a patent can be a powerful tool, but only if it can be proven in a court that its owner has bulletproof claims to the invention, according to legal experts. Companies that challenge a patent have to prove the patent owner was not the first one on record for the invention.

Carl Oppedahl, an intellectual property attorney at Oppedahl, Larson & Frisco, said: "This means that if someone tries to invalidate the Microsoft patent, they would try to find examples of instant messaging that predated the filing date."

A Microsoft representative declined to comment on the patent. Both AOL and Yahoo representatives declined comment as well.

Jim Hu writes for News.com