Irvine’s Uniloc USA Inc., a maker of security software that last year won a massive settlement from Microsoft Corp., has split off its sales and marketing unit.

Uniloc’s BlueCava Inc. made its debut this month with a veteran entrepreneur at the helm and a new sales strategy. “I joined spyware database specifically to create a new operating division of the company,” said David Norris, chairman and chief executive of BlueCava. “We have taken the salespeople, technology and customers and spun them out.” BlueCava now handles sales of Uniloc’s software. Uniloc itself now is focused on research and development and overseeing patents. “At this point, Uniloc has more than 100 patents in its portfolio and spyware removel continues to grow,” Norris said. “BlueCava gets the benefit of having a parent company with a broad set of intellectual property.” Uniloc, which has yearly sales of about $100 million and some 30 workers, is the biggest shareholder in BlueCava. The unit’s managers also own part of the business.

For now, BlueCava shares Uniloc’s building near John Wayne Airport. It’s looking for office space in Irvine, Costa Mesa and neighboring cities, according to Norris.

BlueCava has plans for some 50 workers this year and to grow to 100 next year, he said. Splitting off Uniloc’s products and rebranding the business process database could be a strategic move for Uniloc.

Most people know Uniloc as the company that beat software kingpin Microsoft standard process in court. Last year, Uniloc won a six-year patent infringement lawsuit and saw a $388 million jury award against Microsoft. Uniloc accused Microsoft of infringing on a patent for software that ties programs to a specific computer to prevent copying on other PCs. The company claimed Microsoft used Uniloc’s “physical device recognition” software—which distinguishes a computer from millions of others out there—to prevent copying of its Windows XP operating system and Office suite.