Microsoft spends $1bn on AOL patents

[Dos_Box]

From the BBC here: BBC News - Microsoft buys and licenses AOL patents in $1bn deal

 

Microsoft is buying the majority of AOL's patents in a deal worth $1.06bn (£668m).

A statement said the agreement covers the intellectual property rights to more than 800 innovations.

Microsoft will also be granted licensing rights to about 300 patents that AOL is keeping.

It is the latest in a series of such deals as technology firms act to bolster their chances in related lawsuits.

If a company successfully sues another it can demand a sales ban of its competitor's products, or force the loser to pay expensive licence fees.

Since the start of the year Intel, Google and Facebook are among those to have bought significant numbers of patent from other tech companies.

 

 

I wonder if Microsoft got the 'AOL-CD-though-the-mail-every-other-day' patent included in this deal?

Edited April 9, 2012 by Dos_Box

[Steve21]

Curious to see what MS is after from them Assuming it's only going to be a few patents, but hiding it from the public views for future products!

 

Steve

[Arthur]

Curious to see what MS is after from them

Microsoft now owns all of Netscape's patents.

[SYNACK]

Thats concerning, I did not think that MS would need the patents for being completely irrelevant I can't think of anything else that AOL actually managed.

[mac_shinobi]

Thats concerning, I did not think that MS would need the patents for being completely irrelevant I can't think of anything else that AOL actually managed.

 

Internet Explorer to be re-named and converted to Internet n*tscrape

[sted]

dont aol-compuserve own copyright on .gif ?

[localzuk]

dont aol-compuserve own copyright on .gif ?

 

Compuserve created GIF, yes, however it is basically an open standard now - the only 'patented' bit as far as I know was the use of LZW compression, which was owned by Unisys. However, their patents have all since expired, making GIF a free format.

[mac_shinobi]

Map War :

 

Microsoft's purchase of AOL patents may be about a Google map war | ZDNet

[flyinghaggis]

I think AOL own the patent on mass producing CD's to be used as coffee coasters

[SYNACK]

Map War :

 

Microsoft's purchase of AOL patents may be about a Google map war | ZDNet

 

Nokia probably has a few horses in that race to with Ovi/Nokia Maps