Microsoft and Google have finally reached a settlement for their 5 year long patent battle. The duo have agreed to end all patent infringement litigation against each other.
Both the companies said that they have agreed to dismiss about 20 lawsuits brought against each during the past five years over royalties for patents related to smartphones, Wi-Fi and Web video. The terms of the deal were not announced. The legal dispute between the two tech rivals began in 2010 when Microsoft accused Motorola, later acquired by Google, of breaching its obligation to offer licenses to its wireless and video patents used in Xbox systems at a reasonable cost. The suits that have been settled include those related to patents used in Microsoft’s Xbox game consoles and other Windows products.
“Microsoft and Google are pleased to announce an agreement on patent issues. As part of the agreement, the companies will dismiss all pending patent infringement litigation between them, including cases related to Motorola Mobility. Separately, Google and Microsoft have agreed to collaborate on certain patent matters and anticipate working together in other areas in the future to benefit our customers.”
the companies said in a joint statement.
Giving more information about the settlement, Bloomberg reported that Microsoft and Google will work together, along with Amazon.com and Netflix, to develop “royalty-free, video-compression technology to speed downloads” while also lobbying for a unified patent system in Europe.