Barnes & Noble claim victory in Amazon case

Barnes & Noble (B&N) has won a small victory in its legal battle against arch-rival Amazon, which accused it of copying a shopping feature on its website.

A US court of appeals yesterday overturned a preliminary injunction prohibiting B&N from using Amazon's patented 1-Click, which enables consumers to shop without going through multiple steps or re-entering their shipping and billing information each time they buy.

The case has been not been without controversy. Soon after Amazon sued B&N for alleged patent infringement, thousands of software developers threatened to boycott the online retailer because they did not believe the invention was anything new and that a patent should not have been awarded.

In response, Amazon chief executive, Jeff Bezos, vowed to lead an effort to try to revamp patent issuing policy in the US.

But after yesterday's ruling, B&N officials claimed that the court "raised substantial questions as to the validity" of the 1-Click patent. In a statement, company bosses said: "We have said throughout this case that we do not intend to sit back and allow Amazon to stake a claim upon any technology that is widely used."

In its statement, Amazon said it remained confident that the patent is valid and that the appellate court "also confirmed Amazon's strong showing that B&N infringed the patent".

1-Click was introduced onto Amazon's site in September 1997, while B&N's Express Lane was launched in May 1998.

The case is scheduled to return to trial on 10 September.

See also:

Online booksellers end patent feud

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Amazon faces flood of staff complaints

Amazon.co.uk won't have to face the UK's Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service just yet, despite staff complaints over conditions at its Milton Keynes distribution centre.  18 Apr 2001

Amazon hit by class action lawsuits

Amazon.com is being sued by a raft of shareholders who allege that the e-tailer and several of its executives violated US securities laws by distributing "false and misleading" financial statements.  22 Mar 2001

Amazon chief may face insider deal probe

The Securities and Exchange Commission is reportedly investigating Jeff Bezos, chief executive of Amazon.com, after he registered to sell $12m worth of the firm's shares in early February.  12 Mar 2001

Amazon chief executive acts over patent controversy

Amazon.com chief executive Jeff Bezos has moved to deflect criticism of the online retailer's patent policy, saying he will lead an effort to try to revamp the US's patent issuing procedures.  11 Mar 2000

Developers threaten to boycott Amazon.com

Thousands of software developers are threatening to boycott Amazon.com after the online bookseller angered them by suing rival Barnesandnoble.com over an alleged patent infringement.  10 Mar 2000

Amazon.com sues Barnesandnoble.com over alleged patent infringement

Amazon.com has slapped a lawsuit on Barnesandnoble.com, which accuses its rival of copying a shopping feature on its Web site.  23 Oct 1999

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