Microsoft files patent-infringement suit against Salesforce.com

Microsoft is suing Salesforce.com for patent infringement.

In the lawsuit, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for Western Washington, the company said Salesforce.com's customer-relationship management software infringed nine of Microsoft's patents. The complaint alleges Salesforce.com violated patents for data mapping, software design, Web integration and graphics display.

Horacio Gutierrez, deputy general counsel of Microsoft, said in a statement that Microsoft has made significant investments in developing software. "We have a responsibility to our customers, partners, and shareholders to safeguard that investment, and therefore cannot stand idly by when others infringe our IP (intellectual property) rights," he said.

Salesforce.com, based in San Francisco, makes CRM and other software for customer-support departments.

The company declined to comment Tuesday.

The lawsuit is symbolic of long-simmering tensions between the two companies. Microsoft makes a competing software for corporate sales departments called Dynamics CRM.

Both companies are also investing heavily in building competing platforms for cloud computing — Force.com from Salesforce.com and Microsoft's Azure.

Salesforce.com Chief Executive Marc Benioff is known for his biting criticisms of Microsoft. One of the company's marketing logos is "software" with a red slash through it.

Sharon Pian Chan: 206-464-2958 or schan@seattletimes.com