Microsoft Wins First Google Patent Trial


Microsoft Wins First Google Patent Trial

Bangalore: Tech giant, Microsoft Corp has won in first of two patent trials against Google Inc’s Motorola Mobility unit, as a federal judge in Seattle ruled largely in the company’s favor, reports Reuters.

Earlier, Motorola had claimed for using its technology in Microsoft’s Xbox console. However, Microsoft owed only a fraction of these royalties, stated U.S District Judge James Robart in Seattle.

Motorola had sought more than $4 billion a year for use of its so-called standard, essential wireless and video patents, where as Microsoft argued that Motorola deserved about $1 million a year. Robart decided the payment to be about $1.8 million and Microsoft accepted the outcome.

In a statement, David Howard, Microsoft’s Deputy General Counsel said, "This decision is good for consumers because it ensures patented technology committed to standards remains affordable for everyone.”

The judgment turned out to be a blow for Google, which bought Motorola for $12.5 billion, partly for its intellectual property stockpile. The low valuation by the federal judge makes Motorola’s patents a weaker bargaining chip for Google to negotiate licensing deals with others.

The second patent trial of Microsoft-Motorola is set for this summer in Seattle. It will decide if Motorola violated its duty to license its standard, essential patents to Microsoft on fair terms. The spat between the two is a strand of a wide-ranging battle over who owns the technology behind Smartphones and other new electronic devices.

Apple and Microsoft have been taking legal action in courts around the world against Google and its partners like Samsung Electronics, which uses Android as their operating system. Apple challenges that Android is a copy of its iOS Smartphone software and Microsoft holds patents it contends cover a number of Android features.