Microsoft's lawyers pen a public note to Motorola suggesting a route to peace in the ongoing patent saga
The ongoing Microsoft versus Motorola patents saga continue to roll, but now Microsoft has published its plan for "patent peace" between the two companies.
In a blog post by Microsoft general counsel Brand Smith and deputy general counsel Horacio Gutierrez, the two top lawyers said Google "mounted a public relations and lobbying campaign deflecting attention from its refusal to honor its promise to standards bodies to license standards-essential patents on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms," which led to authorities on both sides of the Atlantic in the U.S and the EU to investigate.
In order to come to an agreement, a "lasting solution of these disputes will not be reached by leaking settlement positions through the press," Microsoft's lawyers said, adding: "Patent peace will be found through good faith engagement."
More recently, a German court banned the sale of all Motorola devices running Android because the smartphone maker infringed a Microsoft-owned patent relating to file storage.
Meanwhile Motorola secured an injunction against Windows 7 and the Xbox in Germany over H.264 video codecs, though the sales ban will not be enforced immediately. Microsoft said it wanted to use the video compression technology, but Motorola would charge in the region of $4 billion in annual royalties -- which Microsoft said was not at the market rate.
In the new blog post, Smith and Hutierrez went on to detail the two principles to so-called "patent peace," that continues to eat up both companies' time, money and energy, namely that any agreement "must be comprehensive." The second issue relates to H.264 video codecs, one of the most popular codecs available, in which the license fees "must be based on market rates."
But the lawyers warned Google that litigation now "stands at a crossroads."
The ongoing Microsoft versus Motorola patents saga continue to roll, but now Microsoft has published its plan for "patent peace" between the two companies.
In a blog post by Microsoft general counsel Brand Smith and deputy general counsel Horacio Gutierrez, the two top lawyers said Google "mounted a public relations and lobbying campaign deflecting attention from its refusal to honor its promise to standards bodies to license standards-essential patents on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms," which led to authorities on both sides of the Atlantic in the U.S and the EU to investigate.
In order to come to an agreement, a "lasting solution of these disputes will not be reached by leaking settlement positions through the press," Microsoft's lawyers said, adding: "Patent peace will be found through good faith engagement."
Microsoft has always been, and remains open to, a settlement of our patent litigation with Motorola. As we have said before, we are seeking solely the same level of reasonable compensation for our patented intellectual property that numerous other Android distributors -- both large and small -- have already agreed to recognize in our negotiations with them. And we stand ready to pay reasonable compensation for Motorola's patented intellectual property as well.The patent wrangles have a complicated history: earlier this year more than a dozen Android-powered Motorola devices were banned from being imported to the U.S. for sale because Motorola was found to have infringed Microsoft's ActiveSync patent, thanks to a ruling by the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC).
More recently, a German court banned the sale of all Motorola devices running Android because the smartphone maker infringed a Microsoft-owned patent relating to file storage.
Meanwhile Motorola secured an injunction against Windows 7 and the Xbox in Germany over H.264 video codecs, though the sales ban will not be enforced immediately. Microsoft said it wanted to use the video compression technology, but Motorola would charge in the region of $4 billion in annual royalties -- which Microsoft said was not at the market rate.
In the new blog post, Smith and Hutierrez went on to detail the two principles to so-called "patent peace," that continues to eat up both companies' time, money and energy, namely that any agreement "must be comprehensive." The second issue relates to H.264 video codecs, one of the most popular codecs available, in which the license fees "must be based on market rates."
But the lawyers warned Google that litigation now "stands at a crossroads."
With its phones and tablets now subject to injunctions in the U.S. and Germany, Google can no longer doubt the relevance of Microsoft's patent portfolio to Motorola's products. Google can take one of two paths: it can choose either to engage in serious discussions to search for patent peace or persevere in its diversionary tactics. We hope it will choose the first course, and we stand ready to engage in good faith if it does.Motorola was unavailable for comment outside U.S. business hours.
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