Microsoft Sued Over Unauthorized Font Usage In Windows And Office

If you have been clamoring for some legal news, fret not. This is a bit of a regular occurrence in the world of Microsoft. This time, instead of settling a patent or something, Redmond finds itself dealing with another lawsuit.

The software titan has now been accused of using a Hebrew font without permission — both in Windows and the Office productivity suite.

According to this report, a lawsuit has been filed against Microsoft at a court in Lod District that claims that the company has used the Guttman Hodes and Monotype Hadassah without authorization and proper licensing.

This particular font was created more than 70 years ago by Henry Friedlander. He started work on the design in the Netherlands, and completed his work in 1958, calling the font Hadassah.

The daughter of the creator is now seeking damages from Microsoft:

“Hadassah is a special, precious, and festive font, an original work of art, praised by experts as groundbreaking in terms of design and style. The Hadassah font is based on extensive historical research into the shapes and development of Hebrew letters.

Saying that Friedlander would turn over in his grave if he knew what was done to his work is not an exaggeration at all.”

Don’t know about the turning over in graves bit, but Microsoft was quick to issue a statement saying that it infringes no copyrights. The font creator had actually transferred the rights of the fonts over to a foundry in the Netherlands in 1950.

The license, Redmond claims, was purchased by third parties, and sold to Microsoft years later:

“The late Friedlander never made any claims during his life about the widespread use of the Hadassah font. On the contrary, he expressed satisfaction that the font was so widely spread by the Dutch printing house.”

It remains to be seen what comes out of this case. This is a comparatively trivial matter in the grander scheme of things, but here’s hoping for the best possible outcome.