BT's big day in court

Judge Colleen MacMahon will preside over BT's long-awaited legal battle for ownership of hyperlinks when the case begins in New York State later today.

The lawsuit has been taken out against US ISP Prodigy, which has 3.6 million customers. If successful BT will seek royalties from Prodigy and 17 other US ISPs from the day it contacted them until the patent expires in 2006.

The UK telco claims work carried out in the mid-1970s as part of the Prestel project led to the creation of the links seen on every website today. A patent was awarded in 1986 but lay undiscovered until 2000.

BT says it isn't worried about the possible adverse publicity from this case and is merely protecting shareholder interests by protecting its own intellectual property.

The telco will be represented by US intellectual property right specialists, Kenyon & Kenyon.

Click here (if you think you can afford it) for more on case:
Will BT own the internet by next Tuesday?
http://www.silicon.com/a51174
Audacious' BT under fire for hyperlink patent claims
http://www.silicon.com/a38166
US patent law attacks cyberspace
http://www.silicon.com/a36842