Microsoft Patents Tracking Cookies

[xpgeek]

Microsoft Patents Multi-Domain User Tracking With Cookies

A patent for Tracking usage behavior in computer systems was granted to Microsoft Tuesday after the software giant explained how it can use invisible images and 'small sized cookies' to surreptitiously track visitors on its own and others' web sites."

Source

Unless I'm interpreting this wrong, sounds like a standard tracking cookie to me. And I'm a bit puzzled by this.

Why would Microsoft even want this patent? Obviously everyone is already doing it, could they be planning to enforce it and actually put a stop to malicious tracking cookies for good, is that their intention, or, are they just getting a patent on it, with no plans to enforce it, before someone else does and makes a long drawn out legal, and stupid, mess trying to enforce it.

Is this something Microsoft actually invented? I didn't think so, not entirely anyway, and its not like its something they could ever be forced to remove from IE in the face of a lawsuit or something, its a cookie, it has nothing to do with the browser, the operating system, well I mean obviously it has everything to do with browsers, but its a type of cookie, the website that places it controls what kind of cookie, not the browser.

Whatever their intentions may be, they can't seriously be thinking about enforcing the patent, could they? Good luck with that, getting the, shot in the dark guess of number of tracking cookie placers, millions?, to stop using them, yea right, good luck with that.

[chopyaedoff]

Wasn't the first browser to support cookies Netscape?

[Slimy]

Awesome, now all they have to do is sue everyone who uses tracking cookies just like they sued all those spammers :)

[Fourjays Veteran]

I don't think it is refering to the "normal" web-based cookie. I think it is refering to something similar used in operating systems, or something relating more directly to an operating system. Not sure thought. :-/