Adobe and Macromedia Settle Patent Disputes

A ugust 2000 saw rivals Adobe and Macromedia preparing to face off in the courtroom, with both companies filing suits against each other for various patent violations. According to an InfoWorld report, the companies announced on Monday that they have agreed to settle all claims.

In mid-May, a jury awarded Macromedia US$4.9 million in damages after finding that Adobeis Illustrator graphics program and Premiere video editing program infringed Macromedia patents. That ruling came a week after a Delaware jury awarded Adobe $2.8 million in a separate suit against Macromedia. Macromedia had at least one suit still outstanding against Adobe before the settlement was announced. That suit was set to go to trial in 2003.

The terms of the settlement were not available at the time the InfoWorld story went to press, but the companies have stated that the agreements will not affect customers. You can read the rest of the article at InfoWorld.