Microsoft Receives its Own Patent for Browser-Based Application Launching Technology

Microsoft recently received a US patent (serial no. 6,662,341) for its technology for launching an application from within a browser such as its Internet Explorer or Netscape's Navigator. The application, a standard HTML program (or written in a scripting language such as VBScript or JavaScript), runs in its own window outside the browser and free of the security restrictions of the browser. Taking advantage of the relaxed security enables the application to do such things as read from and write to a storage medium on a user's local computer. Last year, Microsoft lost a patent infringement suit to Eolas Technologies for infringing the latter's US patent (serial no. 5,838,906) covering a technology for a browser deploying plug-in applications (see E-TIPSâ„¢ Vol 2, No 11, November 6, 2003). Microsoft asserts that there is little, if any, connection between its patent and the Eolas matter, and, further, says that enforcement of its new patent is not currently contemplated. The Eolas patent is presently under re-examination by the US Patent Office. For another report on this subject, see: http://news.com.com/2100-1012_3-5119072.html?tag=nefd_pop. To examine the patent documents mentioned above, see: US Patent No. 6,662,341 and US Patent no. 5,838,906. Summary by: Peter Wang