In a latest patent infringement lawsuit, a small Texas-based company, Eolas Technologies, Tuesday took on as many as 23 corporate bigwigs, alleging that have violated two of its Internet- related patents, pertaining to the use of its patented interactive technologies and embedded applications on their Web sites.

Eolas, which has already secured a $565 million settlement from software giant Microsoft for violating the same patent, has this time round sued companies like Apple, Adobe, Amazon, Google, Yahoo, Sun Microsystems, eBay, and YouTube among others.

In fact, cutting across industries, the lawsuit filed by Eolas in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, also accuses Citigroup, Blockbuster, JPMorgan Chase, Office Depot, Texas Instruments and J. C. Penny, of violating the patent.

Along with seeking undisclosed damages, Eolas is also seeking preliminary and permanent injunctions to prohibit the defendants from using its patented technologies which, as per Eolas' attorney Mike McKool "describe methods for the use of browser add-ons and plug-ins, which enable the interactive use of the Internet."

The interactive technology - which allows Web browsers to act as platforms for fully-interactive embedded applications - was developed in the 1990s by Michael Doyle, the Chairman of Eolas, while he was at San Francisco's University of California. Though it is the University that still owns the patent, Eolas specified that it is the exclusive licensee.