A lawsuit was filed by software major Microsoft against TomTom on the allegations that the in-car navigation devices by TomTom transgress on its license. The legal action was filed in the U. S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

According to Microsoft, TomTom is infringing eight patents, including five that enhance the user experience and connectivity on navigation devices including GPS (global positioning system) devices and personal digital assistants (PDAs). Microsoft has sought damages and relief from TomTom in the lawsuit.

Microsoft deputy general counsel Horacio Gutierrez elaborated that five of the claims are related to car navigation technologies while three are related to file management technologies. A claim is also related to the company's use of the Linux kernel. 

However, neither in its federal court filing nor in the interview did Gutierrez make any reference that the suit involved Linux. But he confirmed about it to Seattle-based technology site TechFlash.

Microsoft had discussions with TomTom to license the technologies, but an agreement could not be reached, said Horacio Gutierrez, corporate vice president and deputy general counsel at Microsoft.

However, none of the representatives from TomTom were available for comments on the issue.