Returning false seems to fix IE from reclaiming window focus. I think

'WTF' best describes this behaviour. Further investigation required.

plugins/Realtime/realtimeupdate.js

@@ -25,6 +25,8 @@ RealtimeUpdate = {
             'border-top-color':'#AAAAAA',
             'border-top-style':'solid'
           });
+          
+          return false;
         });
      },