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Samsung and Microsoft have settled on an agreement for patent royalties and cross licensing. In short, Samsung pays Microsoft money for every Android smartphone sold to use their patents and Microsoft also gets free access to Samsung’s patents. Kind of lopsided if you ask me.
Microsoft also has HTC to bring money in for every Android smartphone of theirs sold. If you don’t remember, elementary math once suggested that Microsoft is making more money on Android phones sold than Windows phones sold. That’s probably a good thing for Microsoft, but the rest of the industry prefer to see it the other way around. It’s almost embarrassing for them, in fact. A statement from Microsoft:
We recognize that some businesses and commentators – Google chief among them – have complained about the potential impact of patents on Android and software innovation. To them, we say this: look at today’s announcement. If industry leaders such as Samsung and HTC can enter into these agreements, doesn’t this provide a clear path forward?
What did I get out of that statement?
Patent lawsuits won’t end Android. In fact, we don’t want it to end! We’d rather make money on the countless OEMs using Android due to the patents we own! Surely that’ll help ease the sting of our own smartphone operating system currently at the bottom of the totem pole. Oh, and we don’t know how long it’ll take for Windows Phone 7 to be successful, if ever. So yeah, we’re capitalizing on you now and forever. Thanks for your money!
I’m sorry for my satire, but it’s really annoying to see this. Microsoft’s seemingly strong-arming their own partners into these lopsided patent agreements for no reason other than to make money. It’s not about innovation for them. They’re aiming to ruin what was so attractive about Android to OEMs in the first place, and that was that this operating system was free not only in the sense of open software, but in licensing. Shame on you, Microsoft. [Source]
I guess Microsot had more relevant patents to bring to the table than Samsung did, hence the lopsided agreement. I hope that Samsung will drop WP7 as some people have already hinted. That way we’d be sure Microsoft would be helping keep Android alive and kicking since it would be their main source of mobile revenue.
Microsoft and Apple are patent whores, I wish Android would be left alone to grow and thrive as it should. All of the law suits and patent arguments just make me want to never buy another Microsoft or Apple product. EVER
Does this make you not want to buy any Google product EVER?
http://news.cnet.com/Google-sues-Froogles.com/2100-1030_3-5676955.html
Apparently even Google understands the damage that infringement can do to a company. Not only did Google sue this company, but they also asked the courts to SHUT THEM DOWN. Now that they are the target of litigation, they complain about the very system they themselves used….
Hypocrites….
Shouldn’t you be beating off to a pic of Steve Jobs, troll?
Typical fandroid response. Unable to intellectually counter the point that was raised, they resort to making some juvenile statement about steve jobs….SO predictable
Instead of providing a lucid, well-thought-out response to a valid counterpoint, you decide that insults and personal attacks are more appropriate.
Phanboys like you is why the stereotype persists.
Google admitted that Android violated patents since day one but they were already neck-high in its development. Google put itself in this position. Typical freetard mentality. Let others do the work and R&D, and slap that work into your own and hope no one notices what you did.
So if anyone should be “beating-off” to any pictures, it should be you to a spread of that silly little green android logo, or maybe Samsung’s.
This was in reply to ScottColbert’s posting below.
Exactly….
That’s from 2005, lol :D
M$ coyldnt be even more greedier than they are now. I hope these greedy bastards also makes thier W indows phone too. Just hope M$ wont recieved a single cent from Samsung. &classic their being like Apple.
Are the licenses public record? I’m guessing not since I can’t find them. I’d be curious as to what it is that they are paying for.
Me too. Why are companies agreeing to licenses to MS? What amazing thing does MS has that they are all using?
To be honest….they should just either:
Give up on WP7
Work together with Google on Android.
Either way….just give up on WP7. I guess Nokia still has the pull to turn WP7 sales around.
None of this makes any sense to me. Its in no way going to help Samsung with whatever current issues that they are having, so that is not even a factor in this. I am guessing Microsoft is threatening all these lawsuits and showing how it would be easier to just go ahead a pay them and while they are at sign on to build Windows Phones. I am sure in some weird way Microsoft is spinning this to make it look like its more of a Android issue, bad press and all. But I have yet to even hear or see what patents all this revolves around.
With Samsung having the MS patent portfolio, Samsung will have significant protection against Apple harassment. Combined with Google’s Motorola patent access, Apple will find it much more difficult to shut Samsung down.
I think, at least microsoft is willing to license the patents and let android blooms. rather than not wanting to license them, and block every single android phones from being sold altogether.
That’s because they would lose all that money if they blocked them. wp7 isn’t making them anywhere near what android is.
That just shows they don’t care about wp7 and its abysmal sales numbers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLRtUGviSc8
That video says it all. MS and Symbian were so dismissive of the Android system, and look where they are now. I love how You Tube sets their absurd opinions in stone so that we all can laugh at how incredibly idiotic they sound.
Newsflash Fandroids:
This is what happens when you build an entire OS off of IP theft…..the chickens have come home to roost. Why anyone expects a company to sit back and allow their patented IP to be infringed upon without consequence is beyond me….and before you start firing back at me about Apple, let me for the record say that this goes for everyone….including Apple. If it is proven that Apple has infringed upon Samsung’s IP, then they should pay the price just like everyone else. As a publicly traded company, it is their right and their responsibility to their shareholders to protect their legally awarded patents, copyrights and trademarks. Apparently even Google realizes this as well:
http://news.cnet.com/Google-sues-Froogles.com/2100-1030_3-5676955.html
I take that back….lol
Didnt read your entire post. Usually its “Apple is the greatest, everyone else sucks!!!” lol
But….it hasn’t been proven yet that they built an entire OS off of IP theft.
One day all these patent issue will be gone. Hopefully
But jroc I don’t think you have to throw the baby out with the bath water….does it need to be modified? Absolutely. But I do think that there has to be protection for a company’s IP. Like I said, I’m not being biased in this instance….that goes for Apple and everyone else….
Did you even read that article, or are you too retarded to understand it? That lawsuit is over a name Google got trademarked in 2004.
And? The POINT of me posting the link is to prove that even your precious Google is not above filing an infringement lawsuit. And you know what? THEY HAD EVERY RIGHT TO! Google rightfully recognized that another company was attempting to profit off of their legally awarded trademark, so they sued. I have no problem with that. It just seems that the same company wants to deny other companies of that very right when they themselves are the target….can’t have it both ways….
Your mixing patents and trademarks.. There should be no patents on ideas.. period.. A unique way to implement them, or code, yes.. but ideas are abstract, and many people can have the same idea.. I could patent the idea of a flying cars, and it would be wrong to collect on the work of somebody else who actually made it happen.
You’ve got some residue on your chin.
Microsoft’s seemingly strong-arming their own partners into these lopsided patent agreements for no reason other than to make money.
The horrors of companies whose sole focus is making money! lol. Can’t even get outraged at the naivety. It’s too funny.
Microsoft has their own employees.. their own software developers.. Their own engineers.. Their own teams who put it all together.. They should be making money on that.
When MS got HTC, I skipped buying all HTC phones, cause I knew they would be more expensive… now MS got Samsung… man, my choices of Phones got smaller… I’m jumping to LG now, and if LG goes I’m jumping to Motorola… sheesh! If all else fails, these phones from China are showing some promise :)
Samsung, you really disappoint the fans android
Aren’t Samsung protected by Google’s new patents?
The only reason Samsung would agree to the deal is because Microsoft could deny Samsung rights to windows 7 license and coming windows 8. What I don’t understand is why give Microsoft all you can access to their patents.
This is so stupid in my opinion…
What Samsung and HTC are doing is buying insurance. Even though they pay money to Microsoft, they avoid costly court cases with Microsoft and gain access to Microsoft’s enormous patent portfolio of which they have access to going forward. I’m going to assume this also means that these Microsoft patents can be used as a defense against the greater evil at hand here, Apple.
Never thought of that angle…it would be interesting to find out the details of this and the HTC deal.
When MS got HTC i skipped buying HTC products, now MS got Samsung so I guess I’ll be transferring to LG now… Grrr