Microsoft sued over Windows 8 interface

Microsoft is facing a lawsuit over its the “tiled” Windows 8 interface

Jeremy Proome

November 1, 2012

Microsoft is being sued over the Live Tiles interface in Windows 8.

Live Tiles are the animated tiles or blocks which make up the interface prominently featured in Windows 8, Windows RT and Windows Phone 8. The interface was originally introduced in Windows Phone 7.

The company contesting Microsoft’s UI is SurfCast, an operating system developer, which claims that Microsoft has infringed on its design.

SurfCast, which patented the term back in 2004, described that tiles “can be thought of as dynamically updating icons. A Tile is different from an icon because it can be both selectable and live — containing refreshed content that provides a real-time or near-real-time view of the underlying information.”

SurfCast has requested that orders be submitted showing that Microsoft has directly infringed on its idea, and it is also ordering Microsoft to “account and pay to SurfCast all damages caused to SurfCast by reason of Microsoft’s patent infringement.”