Microsoft Files RSS-Related Patents

Microsoft has filed two separate patents involving RSS technology. Though the patents were filed about 18 months ago, juts days before Microsoft announced RSS support for IE&, they were released to the public just a few days back, following the expiration of a requisite 18-month window in which applications are generally kept secret.

RSS is typically used by news publishers, bloggers and podcasters to notify subscribers of new postings. Web users can choose from a number of freeware applications to collect and read those feeds.

According to Wikipedia "RSS is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated digital content, such as blogs, news feeds or podcasts." It also offers a history about RSS feeds at here.

The first patent covers technologies about "finding and consuming web subscriptions in a web browser". It will also provide ways to allow a user to organize and view web feeds through an API, as well as methods to discover new feeds.

Another patent titled "content syndication platform," appears from the application to be the actual software backend for the methods described in the first patent application.

It appears to describe a system that can break down feeds into a format that can be accessed and managed by many different types of applications and users.

This is not the first time a company has attempted to patent a means of web syndication. Last year, an application surfaced for a patent sought by Google that would cover delivery of advertisements via syndicated news feeds.

The disclosure of the patents has received near immediate criticism from those with strong interests in the RSS format. Dave Winer, who regards himself as one of the inventors of the format, is one of the most vocal. "Presumably they're eventually going to charge us to use it," he wrote in Thursday morning's dispatch at his site, Scripting News. "This should be denounced by everyone who has contributed anything to the success of RSS."

However Nick Bradbury, creator of the popular RSS reader FeedDemon, which was sold to NewsGator Technologies in May 2005, suggested that Microsoft may be seeking the patents to protect itself from lawsuits. "There are plenty of sleazebags who file patent applications on obvious ideas, and then wait for someone like Microsoft to infringe those patents," Bradbury said in his blog. "In other words, companies like Microsoft often file patents to prevent having to shell out millions of dollars to predatory lawyers who haven't invented anything other than a legal pain in the ass." According to him, Microsoft's patent claims were questionable, but, for better or worse, they were perhaps a response to the state of the US patent system.

Don Dodge, director of business development for Microsoft's Emerging Business Team, said in a Friday post on his personal web log that he believed Microsoft has no intention of enforcing the patent or collecting royalties.

The postings are available online as (U.S. Patent Application 20060288011) and (20060288329).