It's a case of the computer-mouse company that roared.
A tiny company with Australian roots accused Microsoft of stealing its designs and infringing on a patent for an ergonomic mouse.
Goldtouch, based in Irvine, California, and Austin, Texas, filed a lawsuit in US District Court Eastern District of Texas, claiming that Microsoft infringed on its patent rights with the marketing of its Microsoft IntelliMouse Pro.
According to the complaint, Microsoft's mouse bears a resemblance to an ergonomic mouse designed by Goldtouch in 1995. Goldtouch officials claim that Microsoft stole the idea for the mouse after meeting with Goldtouch officials in September 1997 to consider a possible relationship with the company.
"They went from the previous shape of the mouse to our shape in the period of one year, and an intervening event was my meeting with them," said Goldtouch president Mark Goldstein, an Australian native who brought his four-employee, family-operated company to the United States in 1997. "When the Microsoft mouse came out in September, we were devastated and outraged."
Goldtouch is asking the courts to stop Microsoft from infringing its patents and is seeking unspecified damages for loss of business and Microsoft's "willful nature" in the alleged patent infringement.
A Microsoft spokesperson declined to comment, saying the company had just acquired a copy of the complaint and needed time for review.
Photos and marketing materials of hardware on the Microsoft and Goldtouch Web sites show some similarities between the respective companies' mouses, yet some differences. For example, both companies tout natural curves and rubber sides for their mice, yet the Microsoft mouse scroll button is positioned to the right of center on its mouse, whereas Goldtouch’s scroll button is positioned on the left.
