Versata won the award in a 2011 trial regarding software that can customize pricing based on factors such as the particular customer, product and size of the order. Versata claimed SAP began offering customized pricing that undercut the business for Versata's Price software. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office invalidated the patent and said it shouldn't have been issue a month after a decision in favor of Versata was upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. SAP pointed to the ironic outcome, noting in a prepared statement that other competitors won't have to pay for alleged infringement. Versata is part of a holding company group whose operations include financial software vendor, Everest Software. It's unclear what exactly what Versata's businesses do. The Versata home page displays a hodgepodge of 24 software companies that can be accessed there. None of these have a press section or a list of executives and the "Contact Us" section for all is the same form.
SAP LOSES ON $391M JUDGMENT Featured
A $391 million judgment against SAP stands after the U.S. Supreme Court this week refused to hear the software company's appeal in a patent infringement case. The judgment stands even though the patent involved has been invalidated. The judgment was obtained by Versata Software in case involving alleged patent-infringement of database management tools. According to published reports, SAP had argued an appeals court changed rules on determining patent infringement and the case should have been suspended while the patent's validity determined.
