The much awaited announcement is finally here: Microsoft and Google have become friends after long patent feud. The two companies promise to work together and use their patents to create better products for customers, the press release wrote.
Ever since he took over the reins of Microsoft, CEO Satya Nadella seemed he was determined to make many changes in the company. The first surprise has already been delivered: it seems the new executive is willing to bury the hatchet and become friends with long-time rival, Google.
The two companies seem to have understood that fighting a long patent war won’t lead them anywhere. On the contrary, the best option for them would be to shake hands and see how they can use their patents to deliver high-end products to customers.
We may not be financial experts, but we assume the decision will bring the two companies much more profit than suing each other. Microsoft and Google had over 20 lawsuits in the United States and Germany, but the new legal terms have put an end to all these issues. The announcement has further revealed that the lawsuit referring to Motorola Mobility patents have also been dropped.
The agreement is related to the production of video encoding, mobile phones and Wi-Fi technologies, the two companies have stated. Yet, Microsoft may still continue lawsuits against Android developers who have allegedly copied its operating systems.
Microsoft and Google simply found a niche they want to explore and they couldn’t do it if they continued their patent feud. It is unclear yet where the new agreement will lead, but developers are making suppositions, based on the previous declarations that the two tech giants have made.
At the beginning of September, the two companies declared that they will work together in a larger project involving other producers like Netflix and Mozilla. The project presupposes the production of a royalty-free video codec, but more details will be provided in the future.
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