The news came out today that Google is going after the patent portfolio of bankrupt Nortel Networks:
Google has bid $900 million US to buy about 6,000 patents in what’s called a stalking horse bid.
That sets the lower limit in an auction scheduled for June, avoiding bids that are unrealistically low. Other potential buyers will be free to make competing offers.
I’m sure that Google can find a few things that are useful that are in that patent portfolio. After all these patents cover wired, wireless and digital communication technologies. Though Microsoft thinks that this doesn’t change the fact that they have rights to these patents. Here’s what a Microsoft mouthpiece spokesperson said:
“Microsoft has a worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free license to all of Nortel’s patents that covers all Microsoft products and services, resulting from the patent cross-license signed with Nortel in 2006.”
So it’s a safe bet that there are a team of Google lawyers that are looking at this to see if this is true or not. If it is, expect a legal crapstorm to start shortly.
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This entry was posted on April 4, 2011 at 10:02 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Google, Microsoft, Notel, Patents. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Google Comes Up With $900 Million For Nortel Patents… Microsoft Might Have Something To Say About It Though
The news came out today that Google is going after the patent portfolio of bankrupt Nortel Networks:
Google has bid $900 million US to buy about 6,000 patents in what’s called a stalking horse bid.
That sets the lower limit in an auction scheduled for June, avoiding bids that are unrealistically low. Other potential buyers will be free to make competing offers.
I’m sure that Google can find a few things that are useful that are in that patent portfolio. After all these patents cover wired, wireless and digital communication technologies. Though Microsoft thinks that this doesn’t change the fact that they have rights to these patents. Here’s what a Microsoft
mouthpiecespokesperson said:“Microsoft has a worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free license to all of Nortel’s patents that covers all Microsoft products and services, resulting from the patent cross-license signed with Nortel in 2006.”
So it’s a safe bet that there are a team of Google lawyers that are looking at this to see if this is true or not. If it is, expect a legal crapstorm to start shortly.
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This entry was posted on April 4, 2011 at 10:02 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Google, Microsoft, Notel, Patents. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.