Patent problems for Microsoft Windows Media?

Several patent holders for MPEG basic technologies have application to the MPEG consortium filed against Microsoft. The accusation: Basic methods of Microsoft's VC-1 procedure (by Microsoft as the standard for video compression in the SMPTE submitted version of Windows Media) will violate existing patents. The question now is whether the holder Pate (rumored includes Sony and Philips), negotiations with the goal of royalty payments by Microsoft to open or to sue Microsoft for patent infringement. Microsoft has until now always announced that Windows Media only to Microsoft in-house developed technologies, and was therefore up to now in the position, Windows Media software free of charge and as an alternative to other, partially paid, codecs such as MPEG 2 or MPEG 4 to establish . From insiders confirmed that Microsoft is not the wheel reinvented, and the compression of video in Windows Media on the same process is based as the MPEG - a description of some Microsoft patents (such as a motion estimation procedure) is appropriate if any methods in MPEG often very similar. Only through the process of standardization of VC1, the source code of Windows Media to other patent on reasonable and verifiable - that is why only now the action. The article speculates that in the event of a court action for damages for billions of Microsoft could be matured and future Windows Media software license fees could cost - the likely outcome of secret Verhanlungen but a license agreement will be.