Microsoft Loses Bid to End Patent Suit

Microsoft Corp. must face a lawsuit by the University of California accusing the software maker of using patented technology without permission in its Web browser, a U.S. court ruled.

U.S. District Judge James B. Zagel rejected Microsoft’s bid to dismiss the suit, ruling that too many issues are in dispute.

The university system and Eolas Technologies Inc. sued Microsoft in 1999, claiming infringement of a patented method that allows a Web browser to access an interactive application program. Microsoft argued that its Internet Explorer didn’t work the way the patent described.