Could leave users of other IM systems hanging on for an answer Microsoft Corp. has been awarded a patent for a feature in IM (instant messaging) that alerts a user when the person they are communicating with is inputting a message. The feature is present in IM services from both Yahoo Inc. and America Online Inc. (AOL).Patent number 6,631,412, awarded to Microsoft Tuesday, could potentially give the company a leg up in the IM market if it is able to enforce the patent and edge out its competitors by exclusively offering the feature.Both Yahoo and AOL in the U.K. were unavailable to comment on the news Wednesday. Besides its strong presence in the consumer IM market with its MSN Messenger service, Microsoft has also made moves to get into the corporate market with its new Office Live Communications Server 2003, which will allow companies to run their own enterprise IM network.Office Live Communications Server 2003 is due to hit the market in coming weeks, while MSN Messenger claims over 100 million active users.According to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Microsoft filed for the IM patent in December of 2002 as a continuation of an application for a “System and Method for Activity Monitoring and Reporting in a Computer Network.” Representatives for the Redmond, Washington, company were not immediately available to comment on how it plans to use the patent. Software DevelopmentTechnology Industry