US Gov't Supports 'Buy it Now' Patent

The United States federal government sided with MercExchange on Monday, saying that auction site eBay knowingly infringed on the company's patents. The Office of the Solicitor General said in a brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court that eBay should be barred from using the popular "Buy it Now" feature, which accounts for a third of the site's sales.

eBay has argued, however, that MercExchange shut down its online business in 2000, and should not be allowed to use the patent to stop an active business. eBay had been found guilty of infringing two patents by a district court. An appeals court overturned that decision, which brought the case to the nation's highest court. The justices will hear arguments from both sides in hearings later this month.