WASHINGTON ? A US appeals court on Friday threw out a damages award of 358 million dollars against Microsoft in a patent infringement case filed by French telecom firm Alcatel-Lucent.

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld the patent infringement ruling against Microsoft by a lower court but overturned the damages award saying it was "not supported by substantial evidence."

It asked the lower court to recalculate the damages in the case.

The Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft welcomed the ruling.

"We are pleased that the Court vacated the damages award, and we look forward to taking the next step in the judicial process," said spokesman Kevin Kutz said.

Alcatel-Lucent welcomed the infringement ruling but expressed disappointment the damages were overturned.

"We are very pleased with this decision by the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirming the jury's decision that Microsoft infringed the Alcatel-Lucent Day patent," spokeswoman Mary Ward said.

"While we are disappointed that the Court did not affirm the jury's decision on damages, we look forward to an upcoming proceeding to determine the compensation to which Alcatel-Lucent is entitled based on the Court's finding that Microsoft did use our patented invention," she added.