Apple-Samsung verdict a ‘wake-up call’ for Google
In a recent interview with Bloomberg TV, Google’s vice president of corporate development David Lawee said that the results of the landmark infringement trial between Apple and Samsung served to change the company’s view on tech patents. Lawee said of Google, “We weren’t patenting things as aggressively as we should have been. We didn’t believe rounded corners were patentable.”
The last sentiment is an obvious jab at Apple design patents that scored the Cupertino-based company victory over Samsung. Samsung had argued that things as simple and rectangles with rounded corners we such commonplace elements in the mobile industry that Apple’s patents pertaining to such aesthetics should be ruled invalid. Google seems to agree with that claim.
Lawee continued to say that the results of the trial served as a “wake-up call,” forcing the company to become a bit more agressive in the intellectual property space. Some would argue that Google has been quite aggressive in acquiring new patents through the buyout of Motorola and Nortel’s IP portfolio, both of which occurred long before the court reach a decision in the case. Lawee seems to be implying, however, that the company now will be more likely to leverage those patents.
[via AllThingsD]