I poked around this when I first heard it a few days ago. I think Microsoft have been pretty hard done by here - it's not a situation that does anyone any good.

What I really cant understand is how this other company was awarded a patent in this situation. The XML working group published the first lot of its standards in 1997. This patent was issued in 1998, and from what I can see it makes just takes xml and its schema provisions and wraps it up into a private patent. Allowing this patent to stand just makes a mockery of the whole industry.