Adobe wins patent case

Adobe Systems has won the patent infringement case which was brought against it by UK company Quantel, writes James Harding.

Quantel charged Adobe in January 1996 with copying its software, but a Californian court disagreed.

Adobe chairman and chief executive John Warnock said the case, which involved Adobe Photoshop, was unfounded. ?We are pleased that the jury system worked. The case demonstrates that companies can vigorously defend these cases on their merits and win.?

The company has also announced that impressive sales of publishing software helped increase turnover and profit in its third quarter ended 29 August.

Adobe said sales of its Windows-based packages had increased and the company claimed its Macintosh-based sales were steady.

The company made $53.4m (#33.4m) profit, up 53% from $34.9m in the same period last year, on turnover of $230m, up 76% from $130.5m for the same period in 1996.

?We are pleased with having achieved record revenue in the normally slower summer quarter,? Warner commented.

Adobe?s profit was almost double the amount analysts had expected. The company also launched a stock re-purchase scheme, under which it will buy back 15 million shares over the next two years, after assessing its cash position.