Eolas Technologies has won a US$520.6 million award in a lawsuit against software giant Microsoft. The case involves patented technology developed by Eolas that allows the use of plugins and applets in Web browsers. Eolas, a company started by former University of California professor Michael Doyle, filed the lawsuit against Microsoft in 1999, according to an article at Yahoo! Finance. The company claims that Microsoft used its patented technology to make Internet Explorer a viable competitor to Netscape Navigator, and the courts agreed. Microsoft plans to appeal the decision. From Yahoo Finance:

A federal jury in Chicago awarded the University of California and a browser technology company $520.6 million after finding on Monday that their patents were infringed by Microsoft Corp.

The suit, originally brought against the worldis largest software maker in 1999 by Eolas Technologies Inc., charged that Microsoft had used Eolasi patented Web browser technology which allows other mini-applications to work with Microsoftis Internet Explorer browser, according to court documents.

Eolas had argued that the technology for "plug-ins" and "applets" made it possible for Microsoft to compete against the Netscape Navigator browser.

You can read the full article at Yahoo Financeis Web site.