BEIJING, August 13 (Xinhuanet) -- Microsoft Corporation may have to stop the sales of Microsoft Word in U.S. markets after finding the software contains technology which violates a patent held by a Canadian company, according to reports on Thursday.

    On Tuesday, a U.S. district court in Texas issued a permanent injunction which bars Microsoft from selling recent versions of its Word software because it violates a patent held by i4i Incorporation. The court found Microsoft had infringed on the patent for its software that manipulates "document architecture and content."

    I4i, a Toronto-based software producer, has been battling Microsoft over a patent related to Extensible Markup Language (XML). XML is a key software component of many websites as well as Word and other programs.

    The judge also awarded the Canadian company damages of about 290 million U.S. dollars.

    Microsoft, in a statement, said it would appeal the verdict. It must appeal within 60 days of the judgment.

    Microsoft Word is a core component of Microsoft Office, part of the largest revenue-generating unit of Microsoft's business, and is used by millions of people worldwide.

    (Agencies)