The issue focused on copyright laws that prohibit lawsuits against retailers who illegally remove legally purchased electronics from stores and websites. Lawsuits brought by plaintiffs allege that Microsoft illegally ripped off legitimate manufacturers with hidden advertising fees to lure consumers away from legitimate sellers. The lawsuit argues that illegal merchants generally profit when customers purchase knockoffs of legitimate hardware or software.

Microsoft lawyers dismissed the litigation as legal spam. They argued that lawsuits filed under existing legislation — laws Microsoft implemented while suing Apple for copying songs from iTunes — should not require courts to