USITC told to review ruling that Google did not violate Microsoft patent

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An appeals court on Thursday partially reversed a ruling by the U.S. International Trade Commission, asking it to reconsider a decision that Google Inc (NSQ:GOOG) subsidiary Motorola Mobility did not infringe on a Microsoft Corp (NSQ:MSFT) patent.

Acting on an appeal by Microsoft, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit found that the ITC was correct in finding that Motorola Mobility, which has since been bought by Google, did not infringe three patents.

But it found that the ITC erred in its reasoning in finding that a fourth patent was not infringed upon, and asked the ITC to reconsider that patent, which describes a graphical computer interface.

In the original case, the ITC had found that Motorola Mobility did infringe one patent for meeting-scheduling technology.

The case at the ITC was No. 337-744. At the Federal Circuit, the case is No. 2012-1445, -1535.

(Reporting by Diane Bartz, editing by Ros Krasny and Gerald E. McCormick)

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