Google fights combined 'patent attack' from Apple, Microsoft

Search giant Google on Thursday (Manila time) accused Oracle, Apple and Microsoft of joining forces to attack Android, its operating system for mobile devices, with "bogus" patents. Google Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer David Drummond said Microsoft and Apple had always been at each other’s throats yet are allies in this case. "But Android’s success has yielded something else: a hostile, organized campaign against Android by Microsoft, Oracle, Apple and other companies, waged through bogus patents," he said in a blog post. He said Android is "on fire" with more than 550,000 Android devices are activated every day, through a network of 39 manufacturers and 231 carriers. Drummond added that Android and other platforms are competing hard against each other, which yields "cool new devices and amazing mobile apps for consumers." According to him, Android’s foes banded 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. “They are 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," he said. Drummond hinted that Google will fight back in the legal arena. “We’re not naive; technology is a tough and ever-changing industry and we work very hard to stay focused on our own business and make better products. But in this instance we thought it was important to speak out and make it clear that we’re determined to preserve Android as a competitive choice for consumers, by stopping those who are trying to strangle it," he said. He said Google is encouraged that the Department of Justice forced the “group" to license the former Novell patents on fair terms, and that it’s looking into whether Microsoft and Apple acquired the Nortel patents for anti-competitive means. “We’re also looking at other ways to reduce the anti-competitive threats against Android by strengthening our own patent portfolio. Unless we act, consumers could face rising costs for Android devices — and fewer choices for their next phone," he said. 250,000 ‘patents’ Drummond said that with a smartphone involving as many as 250,000 (largely questionable) patent claims, “our competitors want to impose a ‘tax’ for these dubious patents that makes Android devices more expensive for consumers." In effect, he said Android’s foes want to make it harder for manufacturers to sell Android devices. “Instead of competing by building new features or devices, they are fighting through litigation," he said. Such an “anti-competitive strategy" is also escalating the cost of patents way beyond what they’re really worth, he said. Drummond said Microsoft and Apple’s winning $4.5 billion for Nortel’s patent portfolio was nearly five times larger than the pre-auction estimate of $1 billion. But he said the law frowns on the accumulation of dubious patents for anti-competitive means — which means these deals are likely to draw regulatory scrutiny, and this patent bubble will pop. — TJD, GMA News