When patents attack Android google :|

[Maryam]

I have worked in the tech sector for over two decades. Microsoft and Apple have always been at each other’s throats, so when they get into bed together you have to start wondering what's going on. Here is what’s happening:

Android is on fire. More than 550,000 Android devices are activated every day, through a network of 39 manufacturers and 231 carriers. Android and other platforms are competing hard against each other, and that’s yielding cool new devices and amazing mobile apps for consumers.

But Android’s success has yielded something else: a hostile, organized campaign against Android by Microsoft, Oracle, Apple and other companies, waged through bogus patents.

They’re doing this by banding together to acquire Novell’s old patents (the “CPTN” group including Microsoft and Apple) and Nortel’s old patents (the “Rockstar” group including Microsoft and Apple), to make sure Google didn’t get them; seeking $15 licensing fees for every Android device; attempting to make it more expensive for phone manufacturers to license Android (which we provide free of charge) than Windows Phone 7; and even suing Barnes & Noble, HTC, Motorola, and Samsung. Patents were meant to encourage innovation, but lately they are being used as a weapon to stop it.

A smartphone might involve as many as 250,000 (largely questionable) patent claims, and our competitors want to impose a “tax” for these dubious patents that makes Android devices more expensive for consumers. They want to make it harder for manufacturers to sell Android devices. Instead of competing by building new features or devices, they are fighting through litigation.

This anti-competitive strategy is also escalating the cost of patents way beyond what they’re really worth. The winning $4.5 billion for Nortel’s patent portfolio was nearly five times larger than the pre-auction estimate of $1 billion. Fortunately, the law frowns on the accumulation of dubious patents for anti-competitive means — which means these deals are likely to draw regulatory scrutiny, and this patent bubble will pop.

We’re not naive; technology is a tough and ever-changing industry and we work very hard to stay focused on our own business and make better products. But in this instance we thought it was important to speak out and make it clear that we’re determined to preserve Android as a competitive choice for consumers, by stopping those who are trying to strangle it.

We’re looking intensely at a number of ways to do that. We’re encouraged that the Department of Justice forced the group I mentioned earlier to license the former Novell patents on fair terms, and that it’s looking into whether Microsoft and Apple acquired the Nortel patents for anti-competitive means. We’re also looking at other ways to reduce the anti-competitive threats against Android by strengthening our own patent portfolio. Unless we act, consumers could face rising costs for Android devices — and fewer choices for their next phone.

Posted by David Drummond, Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/08/when-patents-attack-android.html

 

[Carlos]

wow. A gang of companies trying to take down google's android? Why didn't companies do this when microsoft started trying to monopolize the tech industry?

 

[Wired]

wow. A gang of companies trying to take down google's android? Why didn't companies do this when microsoft started trying to monopolize the tech industry?

Android is hardware, whereas Microsoft monopolizes the a software platform - the OS.

 

[Carlos]

I know that. I'm just saying, why hasn't other companies ganged up on microsoft when they tried to monopolize it.

Hardware, and software are one - the tech industry. This is universally known.

 

[Wired]

I know that. I'm just saying, why hasn't other companies ganged up on microsoft when they tried to monopolize it.

The OS battles have been going on for 30 years. Apple screwed themselves over when they refused to allow other hardware vendors to license their OS. Microsoft did allow it, and was able to grow their user base significantly over a relatively short period of time. But I digress, there's tons of books on the topic.

Hardware, and software are one - the tech industry. This is universally known.

Yes, but not all companies are in both markets.

Microsoft responded to Google's blog post: http://www.engadget.com/2011/08/03/google-slams-apple-and-microsoft-claims-hostile-organized-cam/

 

[Dean]

I put some quotes around the article to make it clear that Maryam did not write the article.

 

[Carlos]

I put some quotes around the article to make it clear that Maryam did not write the article.

Thanks! T'was needed.

 

[steven s]

Android is hardware, whereas Microsoft monopolizes the a software platform - the OS.

And Apple is both.

 

[Lucas]

And now it's not Google anymore but Apple and Microsoft. It's always someone doing something to others. I don't support all this heavy patenting lately but to be honest, I can't side with anyone, who the heck knows what's really going on. No one is a poor kid here.

 

[Divvens]

Update 2: Hoo boy! The hits just keep comin' out of Redmond. Frank Shaw, lead corporate communications for Microsoft has just tweeted an image of an email between Brad Smith and Kent Walker (Google's General Counsel) that appears to corroborate the claims that Microsoft wanted to team up with El Goog.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/08/03/google-slams-apple-and-microsoft-claims-hostile-organized-cam/

 

[Forsaken]

http://www.engadget.com/2011/08/03/google-slams-apple-and-microsoft-claims-hostile-organized-cam/

The email image means absolutely nothing as you cannot see what he was responding to, or what deal was offered.

Microsoft wouldn't offer something along those lines unless they're getting something out of it, and chances are it goes against a lot of what Google has done to date (eg they never use patents offensively).

 

[Tomble]

Obvious PR move to try and use their image as the good guys of the tech industry to get consumers on their side. Seems pretty standard stuff but I'd rather all these companies stopped doing this and instead stuck to competing to create the best products and let people judge them solely on that.