Microsoft Gets $444M A Year From Android Licenses

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Most companies would kill to be raking in over $440M a year. Microsoft makes that just off Android patent deals. :eek:

Microsoft is will generate $444 million in revenue from Android patent deals for fiscal year 2012 (started in July 1, 2011, ends June 30, 2012), according to a note from Goldman Sachs's tech analyst team. Goldman estimates that Microsoft is getting $3-$6 per Android device sold.
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I can see Oracle squirming and fuming about not being able to collect from Google using Java. Should have gotten on the ball with improving the paid Java for Mobile instead of letting them use the free Java.
 
what's amazing is that Microsoft is managing to rack up this tax even though they have yet to demonstrate a single valid patent that Android actually infringes.

It's a pretty creative extortion racket. Microsoft claims they have patents Android and Linux violate. Then for an inconsequential amount of cash per device they'll just let the patent infridgement slide... making sure they always set the licensing fee low enough that their extortion target won't haul them in the court... and force Microsoft to show that Microsoft doesn't actually HAVE any infringed patents... and that if any patents are infringed, they either are invalid, or related to the File-Allocation-Table patents.

Meanwhile software vendors outside of Microsoft cannot up and show how often Microsoft infringes their patents and or licenses because Microsoft's Source Code isn't available for peer review or investigation. Be interesting to see the criminal fines and jail time Microsoft and it's employees might have to face if Microsoft Windows NT6 distribution was picked apart for infringement upon GPL'd software.
 
Good for them. I am not sure what patients Android infringes on but the fact that it is a great mobile OS leads me to believe that they infringe on more than zero.
 
I never understood this at all;
What the hell does Microsoft have to do with Linux anything.
I think all they can claim they hold patents on are "programming techniques"

That is like trying to patent carving techniques if you are a wood carver.
 
Saist said:
what's amazing is that Microsoft is managing to rack up this tax even though they have yet to demonstrate a single valid patent that Android actually infringes.

It's a pretty creative extortion racket. Microsoft claims they have patents Android and Linux violate. Then for an inconsequential amount of cash per device they'll just let the patent infridgement slide... making sure they always set the licensing fee low enough that their extortion target won't haul them in the court... and force Microsoft to show that Microsoft doesn't actually HAVE any infringed patents... and that if any patents are infringed, they either are invalid, or related to the File-Allocation-Table patents.

Meanwhile software vendors outside of Microsoft cannot up and show how often Microsoft infringes their patents and or licenses because Microsoft's Source Code isn't available for peer review or investigation. Be interesting to see the criminal fines and jail time Microsoft and it's employees might have to face if Microsoft Windows NT6 distribution was picked apart for infringement upon GPL'd software.
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So.. vendors pay MS out of their good heart instead of trying to invalidate those patents?
 
Saist said:
what's amazing is that Microsoft is managing to rack up this tax even though they have yet to demonstrate a single valid patent that Android actually infringes.

It's a pretty creative extortion racket. Microsoft claims they have patents Android and Linux violate. Then for an inconsequential amount of cash per device they'll just let the patent infridgement slide... making sure they always set the licensing fee low enough that their extortion target won't haul them in the court... and force Microsoft to show that Microsoft doesn't actually HAVE any infringed patents... and that if any patents are infringed, they either are invalid, or related to the File-Allocation-Table patents.

Meanwhile software vendors outside of Microsoft cannot up and show how often Microsoft infringes their patents and or licenses because Microsoft's Source Code isn't available for peer review or investigation. Be interesting to see the criminal fines and jail time Microsoft and it's employees might have to face if Microsoft Windows NT6 distribution was picked apart for infringement upon GPL'd software.
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Samsung sells over 10 million android phones a year pretty easily. Thats 10,000,000 * 15 = 150,000,000Million per year they are paying to Microsoft. Something tells me Microsoft has far more than nothing.
 
Ch3 said:
So.. vendors pay MS out of their good heart instead of trying to invalidate those patents?
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Linux like to believe that Linux doesn't infringe anyone's patents. But, you can't write any useful software without violating someone else's patents. This will become even more true under the recently passed patent law expansion.

Microsoft has claimed Linux violates over 100 MS patents. If even 10% of those would stick in court, Android and Linux companies would be losing a lot more than $444 million.

Now, Google is desperately buying patents to try to protect Android phones.
 
Dr. Righteous said:
I never understood this at all;
What the hell does Microsoft have to do with Linux anything.
I think all they can claim they hold patents on are "programming techniques"

That is like trying to patent carving techniques if you are a wood carver.
Click to expand...

If it were something that small I doubt they would pay. Obviously MS has some good patents if they are willingly paying without going to court.
 
Saist said:
what's amazing is that Microsoft is managing to rack up this tax even though they have yet to demonstrate a single valid patent that Android actually infringes.

It's a pretty creative extortion racket. Microsoft claims they have patents Android and Linux violate. Then for an inconsequential amount of cash per device they'll just let the patent infridgement slide... making sure they always set the licensing fee low enough that their extortion target won't haul them in the court... and force Microsoft to show that Microsoft doesn't actually HAVE any infringed patents... and that if any patents are infringed, they either are invalid, or related to the File-Allocation-Table patents.

Meanwhile software vendors outside of Microsoft cannot up and show how often Microsoft infringes their patents and or licenses because Microsoft's Source Code isn't available for peer review or investigation. Be interesting to see the criminal fines and jail time Microsoft and it's employees might have to face if Microsoft Windows NT6 distribution was picked apart for infringement upon GPL'd software.
Click to expand...

If HTC, Samsung, and Motorola didn't believe Microsoft had valid patents they wouldn't pay, period.
 
Ch3 said:
So.. vendors pay MS out of their good heart instead of trying to invalidate those patents?
Click to expand...

Microsoft is a 800 pound gorilla and you're a little kitty cat. You give them what they want, or they'll make you broke from court fees and lawyers.

This is why Google bought Motorola, to help stop these extortion fees that Microsoft is racking in. How many patents Google got from Motorola is yet to be seen. I'm sure Google isn't gone yet.
 
Derangel said:
If HTC, Samsung, and Motorola didn't believe Microsoft had valid patents they wouldn't pay, period.
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Because Microsoft couldn't threaten them, withhold licensing for Windows on PCs and WinMo on Phones or do anything else to intimidate them into playing their way. There's just no incentive at all to stick with Microsoft no matter how wrong they are. None.
 
Wow guys ... have you never heard of out of court settlements?

It's not like Microsoft sent Google, HTC, Samsung, LG and Motorola letters "stating" that they're actually infringing without asking to meet and then settle.

Lawyers from all sides met, and the Android camp saw that MS had something that they couldn't refute in court so they settled out of court. Some companies do meet before lawsuits and try and settle it in an orderly manner, if it can't be done or one side ignores letters/calls for a meeting, then it goes to court.

For all we know, MS might actually be letting them off easy with $3-$6 per Android device.
 
Ashbringer said:
Microsoft is a 800 pound gorilla and you're a little kitty cat. You give them what they want, or they'll make you broke from court fees and lawyers.
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Since when is Samsung a "little kitty cat?" Last I checked their revenue was even higher Microsoft's. I think Microsoft pulled in over 75 Billion dollars last year in revenue with Samsung pulling in over 120 Billion in revenue. And they're spending who knows how many hundreds of thousands of dollars fighting Apple in courts in at least half a dozen countries.

The fact Samsung signed this is indicative of how essential these patents are. There's even an article out there somewhere about an alleged unnamed executive from Samsung being quoted as saying if they believed the Google/Moto deal would be beneficial to them, they wouldn't have signed the Microsoft cross-licensing agreement.

Again, it's alleged, but if true, speaks volumes for the kind of position Google's Android is in in regards to IP infringement.
 
Its just sad what patent wars have come to.

Just shows how the little guy doesnt stand a chance anymore.. Not saying google or any phone company is the little guy, but if we were to come up with an idea for just about anything technology based they would rip us apart
 
I feel stupid for not having some Microsoft stock!!! (I need to look into what they pay in dividends)
 
Saist said:
what's amazing is that Microsoft is managing to rack up this tax even though they have yet to demonstrate a single valid patent that Android actually infringes.

It's a pretty creative extortion racket. Microsoft claims they have patents Android and Linux violate. Then for an inconsequential amount of cash per device they'll just let the patent infridgement slide... making sure they always set the licensing fee low enough that their extortion target won't haul them in the court... and force Microsoft to show that Microsoft doesn't actually HAVE any infringed patents... and that if any patents are infringed, they either are invalid, or related to the File-Allocation-Table patents.

Meanwhile software vendors outside of Microsoft cannot up and show how often Microsoft infringes their patents and or licenses because Microsoft's Source Code isn't available for peer review or investigation. Be interesting to see the criminal fines and jail time Microsoft and it's employees might have to face if Microsoft Windows NT6 distribution was picked apart for infringement upon GPL'd software.
Click to expand...
Note the companies that paid out for the licenses:
HTC
Samsung
Acer
etc etc

Note an important thing they all have in common: they also sell Windows Phone. I believe these companies decided to shell out the cash, because they want to keep the doors open for WP7 in case it ever takes off. The only companies Microsoft is suing over Android (B&N, Motorola) have no plans to have Microsoft-based products and thus gave M$ the finger.
 
nicknations said:
Its just sad what patent wars have come to.

Just shows how the little guy doesnt stand a chance anymore.. Not saying google or any phone company is the little guy, but if we were to come up with an idea for just about anything technology based they would rip us apart
Click to expand...

I wouldn't say that, MS got sued for patent infringement from i4i on XML.
 
Saist said:
what's amazing is that Microsoft is managing to rack up this tax even though they have yet to demonstrate a single valid patent that Android actually infringes.

It's a pretty creative extortion racket. Microsoft claims they have patents Android and Linux violate. Then for an inconsequential amount of cash per device they'll just let the patent infridgement slide... making sure they always set the licensing fee low enough that their extortion target won't haul them in the court... and force Microsoft to show that Microsoft doesn't actually HAVE any infringed patents... and that if any patents are infringed, they either are invalid, or related to the File-Allocation-Table patents.

Meanwhile software vendors outside of Microsoft cannot up and show how often Microsoft infringes their patents and or licenses because Microsoft's Source Code isn't available for peer review or investigation. Be interesting to see the criminal fines and jail time Microsoft and it's employees might have to face if Microsoft Windows NT6 distribution was picked apart for infringement upon GPL'd software.
Click to expand...

Apple would be in the same boat... most of apple core is from GPL software.
 
yimingwuzere said:
Note the companies that paid out for the licenses:
HTC
Samsung
Acer
etc etc

Note an important thing they all have in common: they also sell Windows Phone. I believe these companies decided to shell out the cash, because they want to keep the doors open for WP7 in case it ever takes off. The only companies Microsoft is suing over Android (B&N, Motorola) have no plans to have Microsoft-based products and thus gave M$ the finger.
Click to expand...

I think your list is a little selective to make up your point. You are forgetting:
General Dynamics
Wistron
Onkyo
Viewsonic

I am pretty sure they don't all sell Windows Phones.

Microsoft will almost certainly be going after everyone, who knows why most decided to pay instead of fight.

Amazon is looking like a juicy target now...
 
that just does not seem right at all

but then again i wont lose any sleep over it, it is google and microsoft they both got more than enough money to spare for crap like this
 
And I have paid like $99 in the past 5 years for android phones (the lastest, a $529.99 at the time, Unlocked Nexus S was $0 when I first got it a while back)

I mean, google has the money.... but who are the people who pay google to give away stuff like that? Google has given me like $500+ easily so far... I just can't see how they pay for stuff sometimes, like they have a ocean full of money with no end.
 
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