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Microsoft is getting close to a full house for its Google-targeted licensing program, signing up LG Electronics in a broad deal which, like its flagship agreement with Samsung, covers any consumer devices running Android or Chrome OS.

The Windows giant has been less aggressive than Apple in trying to undermine Android via its IPR, preferring licences to lawsuits - though it is in the courts against Motorola Mobility and Barnes & Noble. Nonetheless, it has succeeded in increasing the cost base for Android by charging royalties, and spreading considerable uncertainty about the exposure of handset makers to IPR litigation or fees.

The details of the LG contract will not be disclosed but Horacio Gutierrez, deputy general counsel at the company's intellectual property group, said in a statement: "We are pleased to have built upon our longstanding relationship with LG to reach a mutually beneficial agreement. Together with our 10 previous agreements with Android and Chrome OS device manufacturers, including HTC, Samsung and Acer, this agreement with LG means that more than 70% of all Android smartphones sold in the US are now receiving coverage under Microsoft's patent portfolio."

Unlike Apple, which competes outright with other handset makers, Microsoft has a more complex relationships with the Google OEMs because it often licenses Windows or WP7 to them too. This means there is more room for negotiation on both sides, and the Samsung deal, in particular, was indicated to include considerable joint development activities alongside simple royalty fees.

Microsoft hopes to make WP7 more attractive vis-a-vis Android and to gain more wholehearted support for it from phonemakers - and some do see it as a useful counterweight to Google's power. HTC has been a longtime supporter, and remains the mobile Windows leader, while LG also has an established alliance with Microsoft to create Windows-based mobile gadgets. One of the only major OEMs to have no WP7 activity, Motorola, is notably the one which Microsoft has dragged into court.

As well as the three major handset makers noted above, other licensees include ODMs like Compal, Quanta and Wistron, which manufacture some of the most prominent Android devices (such as the Kindle Fire). Overall, Microsoft's broad IP licensing program has secured more than 1,100 deals, and in Android alone, some analysts have calculated royalties could bring in $1bn a year in future.

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COMMENTS

Posted by annecyrus on Saturday 21st January, 2012

Thank you for providing an interesting topic here. A while ago, I came across an article connected with the issue. It was entitled "LG latest Android user to license patents from Microsoft". It stated there that LG is the most recent system producer to sign an agreement with Microsoft to license its patents, and the said company is the eleventh manufacturer using Android or Chrome OS platforms to sign a deal with Microsoft. The move is intended to stay away from future lawsuits from the software giant. However, criticism has been noted. According to TechCrunch, Google has categorized Microsoft’s methods as “pure extortion.” Now, do you think this will be beneficial? If so, will the advantages outweigh the disadvantages? In my opinion, some patents are worth defending, some aren't. But, I like seeing the companies work hand in hand, because its how business should run.

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