Further info on Microsoft's FAT

An August 16, 2005 report that has been posted to the patent office web site, the, said that the examiner "stated that although he has not yet considered the written arguments presented regarding these issues... he suspected that in the view of the arguments presented in the interviews, the rejections of record would not be maintained."

The comments are not, themselves, a ruling. The examiner could reverse course after looking at written comments or find new reasons to reject Microsoft's patents. However the software maker was nonetheless pleased.

"The latest statement from the USPTO is promising, especially since the reexamination process is coming closer to completion," Microsoft director of intellectual property licensing David Kaefer said in a statement to News.com.

[from cnet]