A Texan Court on Tuesday blocked Microsoft Corporation from trading selective versions of its extensively used Word software in the United States within 60 days, after it ruled that the company’s particular software breaches the patent of a Canadian technology firm, i4i.

U.S. District Court Judge Leonard Davis issued a permanent injunction, echoing the court’s May verdict that found Microsoft Word’s 2003 and 2007 versions violating the patent of i4i, and slapped damages amounting to $290 million.

The infringement refers to Microsoft''s use of a technology called "Custom XML," used to categorize documents for retrieval by computers, which was later found in some versions of Word.

However, the ruling wouldn’t stop the existing users of Word sporting XML technology from using the software, said Loudon Owen, chairman of i4i.

“We're not talking about ripping Word out of people's computers. What this means is that IT managers will have to ask hard questions going forward about Word,” stated Owen.

In a statement issued by Microsoft, it said that it plans to file an appeal.

“We are disappointed by the court's ruling. We believe the evidence clearly demonstrated that we do not infringe and that the i4i patent is invalid,” said Microsoft spokesman Kevin Kutz.

Further, the ruling found that Microsoft was conscious of i4i's patent and that there was sufficient evidence of Microsoft "willfully infringing" on the patent.