“My immediate reaction to yesterday’s announcement of Google’s proposed purchase of Motorola Mobility on Twitter and Google Plus was this: ‘I caution everyone against overestimating the strength of Motorola Mobility’s patent portfolio. Apple and Microsoft sued $MMI anyway.'”
“I reiterated this in my first blog post on the subject and a more elaborate follow-up, in which I clarified why my position is that Apple attacked Motorola even though Motorola technically won the race to the courthouse,” Meuller reports. “I have meanwhile seen articles in which certain experts — who are experts in some areas, but likely spend less time perusing Android patent suit court filings than I do — claimed that Motorola was the aggressor and Apple ‘forced to defend itself,’ which is plain wrong.”
Mueller reports, “Just to put that misconception to rest and show that Apple truly wasn’t deterred by Motorola Mobility’s grossly overestimated portfolio, I wanted to show something that I’ve been aware for almost a year.”
Read more in the full article -recommended – here.
If anybody knows what he’s talking about, it’s this guy.
He’s talking about the fact that, prior to filing a patent infringement lawsuit, the patent holder [Apple] contacts and confronts the infringing party [Motorola] and makes certain demands, e.g., stop selling the infringing device, pay royalties, etc. This is what the public never sees, all the negotiating, demands, etc. that happen over several months time prior to these lawsuits being filed. You don’t just go out and file a lawsuit, then try to negotiate. That’s MUCH more difficult, and it becomes public.
Motorola obviously refused to meet Apple’s demands (whatever they were), and decided to try to “protect” itself by striking first (Motorola’s patent infringement suit against Apple and declaratory judgment action (trying to get Apple’s patents declared invalid or that Motorola was not infringing)). Motorola did this because it knew Apple was preparing to sue Motorola. I’m sure there was some form of, “This is your last chance before we sue” letter from Apple.
Apple was already preparing to sue Motorola, so Motorola tried to beat Apple to the courthouse and grab control of the coming litigation. Apple may have had to adjust its response and complaint, but it probably had little effect on what Apple was already planning to do.
Like everything else Apple does, Apple has its litigation plan well formulated and is carrying it out on its own time schedule. People may complain on these forums about Apple not suing XYZ company, but for all they know XYZ may have agreed to some license or other payment to Apple or other concessions which we will never know.
Ditto. I like the way that Florian Mueller methodically breaks down the issues.
No, he’s an ideological activist who wants to see the end of the patent system ,and his spin is as dishonest as rush limbaugh or jon stewart.
But, people who use Big Words often delude the gullible into thinking they are authorities.
That’s how jackasses like Obama and Bush (pick one) get elected.
He has a point of view, but he’s pretty even-handed when it comes to analyzing cases.
I didn’t realize Bush used “Big Words”.
He does spin aptly and subtly.
I’m glad I’m not a patent judge.
another interesting blog post by Mueller on the on going Apple vs Android OS suites and counter suites.
To sum up his very sharp post, both the Android device makers (HTC, Samsung, LG, etc), as well as Google know full well what was Google’s reason behind the Moto Mob purchase, and it ain’t the patent portfolio that everyone seems to be talking about.
Motorola was already being sued, and hasn’t been able to leverage any one of the 17,000 patents in those suits. Google’s goal is clearly to attempt real vertical integration by making their own hardware. Android makers have no choice but to applaud this acquisition today, but it shouldn’t take more than one year for everyone to show what they really think and make strategic shifts in the wake of this deal.
With Google becoming the lone maker of Android phones, mobile smartphone marketplace will become even less challenging for Apple than before.
Excellent POINT – however – could GOOGLE not sub-contract other companies to handle outside manufacturing OR even (now owning Motorola) renewing the licences needed for it’s Alliance partners to continue?
I remember the ROKR…..ugh!
iPhone on the market in 2007.
— iPhone OS was made when ??????????????
Google buys ANDROID in 2005.
— interesting – whats the truth here ?
PATENTS ASIDE – the OS was created when?
Well yes they had plans before the iPhone, then Google very publicly switched that course and changed their OS development to completely copycat the iPhone and its multi-touch UI after it was released.
Then again, Google’s entire business model is built upon theft.
On October 17, 2007, Apple announced that a native Software Development Kit (SDK) was under development and that they planned to put it “in developers’ hands in February”.
IF ANDROID was purchased in 2005 by GOOGLE why has it taken so long to BUY UP patents it seems to NEED — ONLY NOW?
WHY – cos they came to market UNPREPARED… not serious about their PRODUCT or ALLIANCE with HTC and others. NOW they are in trouble…
OR did APPLE copy ANDROID?
IT was FREE OPEN SOURCE code – open to develop onto – BUT apple DECIDES to make there own and patent things right… interesting.
Proof: We invade Iraq because they were going to invade us!
Recently revealed documents show Saddam Hussien saying bad things bout the USA! Proof he was going to launch scud missiles against us, and we HAD to invade Iraq.
This whole article is bullshit FUD and revisionist history for the open source anti-innovation crowd.
— agreed — and that’s why you ARE the Engineer!
What has happened to the integrity of the human mind? Brave new Flintstones world. 😯
Google buying ANDROID inc, – was nothing more as it seems, a R&D team for a mobile OS – it really doesn’t mean a product or software was created. PERHAPS only on conceptual demos work in progress or only on the DRAWING BOARD. NO hardware tied to it – no patents on ideas and nothing produced for market.
SMOKESCREEN – this is most important takeaway from the deal.
Meuller is speculating. I would have guessed that Apple would have sued Motorola much earlier if they were really worried about the Droid copying their designs. My guess is that Motorola wanted to copy the designs, could not get Apple to agree to license them to Motorola and so decided to make a preemptive strike by obtaining a “declaratory judgement.”
This view is consistent with their more recent statements that they were planning to sue the other Android manufacturers for infringing on their patents. It would seem that Motorola’s management had decided that they could not compete in the cellphone marketplace and so would be better off following Microsoft’s business model of monetizing their patent portfolio by taxing the other Android manufacturers. In any case the stockholders in Motorola Mobility cannot feel too bad about getting a 40 percent premium on their stock.
I find it even more interesting that Google (“Do no evil”) is going to allow Motorola Mobility to continue their law suites against Apple. It sort of implies that Google really intends to use its patent portfolio to attack Android’s competitors.
Among other things, Google has bought itself LAWSUITS to defend. So much for Motorola patents helping defend Android baloney. TechTards abound.