Microsoft nails second Android device maker Microsoft has nailed a second Android device maker to a patent licensing agreement. The Redmond software giant announced on Monday that General Dynamics Itronix has signed a patent agreement that will provide "broad coverage under Microsoft's patent portfolio". In other words, General Dynamics Itronix has agreed to licensing …
Assuming the commentators are right and it's a FAT dispute and given the fact that FAT (as a patentable bit of guff) has been round longer than 20 years how can it still be enforceable when patents are only applicable for 20 years? (extensions to this are VERY rare, apparently)
"I was looking at Android this time, but if a thin dime goes to Microsoft, I'll get an iPhone 5 and deal with it. I'd as soon use a tin cup and a string than ANYTHING that feeds Microsoft."
Better pre-order your iPhone 5 then - I have nothing against Apple or Microsoft but seems crazy you would base your purchase for a pretty high-ticket item on whether Microsoft may make a small percentage. Let's hope you do not buy your iPhone THEN find out Apple license patents from Microsoft (either now or in the future).
>>Let's hope you do not buy your iPhone THEN find out Apple license patents from Microsoft (either now or in the future).<<
Apple and Microsoft signed a peace treaty in 1997.
>>In 1997, five years after the lawsuit was decided, all lingering infringement questions against Microsoft regarding the Lisa and Macintosh GUI as well as Apple's "QuickTime piracy" lawsuit against Microsoft were settled in direct negotiations. Apple agreed to make Internet Explorer their default browser, to the detriment of Netscape. Microsoft agreed to continue developing Microsoft Office and other software for the Mac over the next five years. Microsoft also purchased $150 million of non-voting Apple stock, helping Apple in its financial struggles at the time. Both parties entered into a patent cross-licensing agreement.<<
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Computer,_Inc._v._Microsoft_Corporation
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Problem is it requires installing extra drivers that cause a nag window on every boot until you tell UAC to fuck off and trust them. Fine for most readers of the Reg, but what is Mr J Public's reaction going to be when he pulls the SD card from his camera, sticks it in the computer and gets "This removable device is corrupt or unreadable, would you like to format it?"
And software patents in general can die in a fire. I hope that someone with the money and balls to challenge Microsoft manages to overturn a few patents. Then encourages the rest of the "licensed" (nice term for "diddled") manufacturers to join them in the biggest class action suit in history. Microsoft and anybody else who behaves like them deserve to be ruined.
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Wasn't Microsoft providing material support (somewhat quietly) to SCO in their Linux "undisclosed patents" suit against IBM, etc.? I suppose that since the patents in question are owned by MS, they couldn't hide in the background this time. It wouldn't have surprised me in the least if they had set up a small company to be their patent warehouse, and then use that company as the lead attack dog. MS could then provide material support one step back from the headlines.
SCO managed to get companies to buy "infringement protection" license agreements early in the Linux patent battle, so they won a few early battles. How did the war work out in the long run for SCO again?
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