Google Claims a 'Hostile, Organized Campaign Against Android'
Google believes Microsoft, Oracle, Apple and other companies are waging a "hostile, organized campaign against Android" though "bogus patents", according to a post on the Official Google Blog:
They’re doing this by banding together to acquire Novell’s old patents (the “CPTN” group including Microsoft and Apple) and Nortel’s old patents (the “Rockstar” group including Microsoft and Apple), to make sure Google didn’t get them; seeking $15 licensing fees for every Android device; attempting to make it more expensive for phone manufacturers to license Android (which we provide free of charge) than Windows Mobile; and even suing Barnes & Noble, HTC, Motorola, and Samsung. Patents were meant to encourage innovation, but lately they are being used as a weapon to stop it.
The post, written by David Drummond, Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer at Google, also attacks Microsoft and Apple's $4.5 billion winning bid for Nortel's portfolio (which is currently under investigation by the Department of Justice on antitrust grounds), saying the patent war is "escalating the cost of patents way beyond what they’re really worth." Google's final losing bid for Nortel's patent assets was around $4 billion.
A few weeks ago, it was rumored that Apple and Google were weighing competing bids for InterDigital, a mobile-technology firm that has an extensive wireless patent portfolio. That portfolio could sell for billions as well.
Popular Stories
Sunday September 25, 2022 2:27 pm PDT by
Sami FathiA YouTuber has put Apple's claims for the durability of the Apple Watch Ultra to the test by putting it up against a drop test, a jar of nails, and repeated hits with a hammer to test the sapphire crystal protecting the display.
TechRax, a channel popular for testing the durability of products, first tested the Apple Watch Ultra by dropping it from around four feet high. The Apple Watch...
Sunday September 25, 2022 10:57 am PDT by
Sami FathiAs we approach the end of a busy product release season for Apple with only new iPads and Macs left to be announced over the next month or so, we're also setting our sights on 2023. Apple is rumored to have several major products in the pipeline for next year, including new Macs, a new HomePod, a VR/AR headset, and so much more.
Other than new iPhones and Apple Watches, which are expected...
An Apple Watch Ultra user has modified their new device's casing to add a brushed finish and remove the orange color of the Action Button in an effort to make it more visually appealing.
The Apple Watch Ultra offers the first complete redesign of the Apple Watch since the product line's announcement in 2014, and while the design has been met with praise from many users, some have criticized...
Monday September 26, 2022 7:34 am PDT by
Sami FathiToday marks exactly two weeks since Apple released iOS 16 to the public. Besides the personalized Lock Screen, major changes in Messages, and new features in Maps, the update has also seen its fair share of bugs, performance problems, battery drain, and more.
After major iOS updates, it's normal for some users to report having issues with the new update, but such reports usually subside in...
Earlier this month, Apple announced that iOS 16.1 will enable a new Live Activities feature that allows iPhone users to stay on top of things that are happening in real time, such as a sports game or a food delivery order, right from the Lock Screen. On the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, Live Activities also integrate with the Dynamic Island.
Premier League match in Dynamic Island via Paul Bradford ...
Monday September 26, 2022 6:23 am PDT by
Sami FathiiPhone 14 Pro customers on the Verizon network in the U.S. are reporting issues with slow and unreliable 5G cellular connections and calls randomly dropping.
Several threads on Reddit (1,2,3) and the MacRumors forums chronicle issues faced by Verizon customers and Apple's latest iPhone. According to user reports, signal strength on the iPhone 14 Pro is unreliable and weak, while other...
Sunday September 25, 2022 6:50 am PDT by
Sami FathiApple may decide to release its remaining products for 2022, which include updated iPad Pro, Mac mini, and 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, through press releases on its website rather than a digital event, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman said that Apple is currently "likely to release its remaining 2022 products via press releases,...
The most recent beta of iPadOS 16.1 expands the controversial Stage Manager feature to older iPads, allowing it to work with iPad Pro models that have an A12X or A12Z chip, according to information Apple provided to Engadget.
The beta also removes the external display support from Stage Manager for the current time, with the feature set to return in a later iPadOS 16 update. Apple's...
Apple today released new betas of iOS 16.1 and iPadOS 16.1 to developers, tweaking some of the functionality that's been introduced in prior betas and in the case of iPadOS 16.1, adding a major new feature to Stage Manager.
We've rounded up everything new in both betas below.
Wallpaper Updates
Apple has updated the Wallpaper section of the Settings app to allow users to swap between...
Apple Watch Ultra has been endorsed by American musician and famous watch collector John Mayer, who has been showing off the new device on his Instagram account.
"Been wearing the Apple Watch Ultra for a week... and it's great," writes Mayer over a photo of the watch. "The first Apple Watch that excited me as a mechanical watch collector." "It's loaded with capability and what I call...
Top Rated Comments
Let's assume for a minute that you're a professional artist. You create a very nice painting. I take a picture of it and start selling postcards with your painting on the back.
Would you show me some "consideration" and not sue me?
Simple questions for Google:
If the patents are "dubious", why were you willing to pay $4 billion for them?
If they are not all dubious, why do you think you and your partners should be able to implement them for free?
Don't be ridiculous.