Man Group plc , a leading futures broker based in the UK , has been sued by a trading software firm alleging infringement of US patents that cover software which allows traders to react immediately to changes in the market.

Chicago-based Trading Technologies has sued trading firms before, alleging patent infringement. Four months ago, it issued an open letter to the futures industry, claiming that it is entitled to a fee of 2.5 cents per trade on each of the "big four" futures exchanges, namely Eurex US, Euronext.liffe, the Chicago Board of Trade, and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Man Group plc operates in 15 countries, including the US. A spokesman told ZDNet UK that the company is confident that it is not infringing patents owned by Trading Technologies.

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