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Apple- and Microsoft-backed patent group ends its war on Android
And just like that, the Rockstar Consortium's lawsuit campaign against Android is over. The patent holding group (backed by Apple, BlackBerry, Ericsson, Microsoft and Sony) has sold all of its commonly held patents to clearinghouse RPX for $900 million, or a fraction of the $4.5 billion the total patent pool was worth a few years ago. Rockstar will accordingly drop the lawsuits that it still had left, including those leveled against HTC, LG and Samsung. Don't worry that RPX will promptly turn around and sue someone else, either. It already has a deal to license those patents for defensive purposes to a group of 30-plus companies, including Google and Cisco, while the Rockstar companies get to keep their licenses.
Google cuts a deal over old Nortel Networks patents
Remember the Rockstar Consortium? The group was formed by a handful of tech giants (including Apple, Microsoft, Ericsson and Sony) to buy a treasure trove of patents and promptly sue both Google and some Android partners, which promised one of the bigger legal battles in recent tech history. Well, it's not going to be as dramatic as first thought -- Google has agreed to settle its part of the lawsuit. The terms of the deal aren't available and will take a few weeks to hash out, but it's likely that Google is forking over some cash to Rockstar given that Cisco did the same earlier in November. It's also unclear if ASUS, HTC, Samsung and other manufacturers have reached their own settlements. However, it's hard to see them keeping up the fight for much longer when Google itself is out of the picture.
Google seeks judgment protecting Android from 'Rockstar' group's patent lawsuits
Google isn't about to remain idle while the Apple- and Microsoft-led "Rockstar" patent group sues numerous Android partners. The search giant has quietly filed a declaratory judgment complaint asking a San Jose court to rule that the company (and therefore, the Android ecosystem) doesn't infringe seven of Rockstar's patents. As GigaOM notes, Google isn't mincing words -- the firm accuses Rockstar of "placing a cloud" over Android and harassing a large part of the technology industry. The legal action doesn't necessarily amount to fighting fire with fire, though. Declaratory judgment complaints frequently represent attempts to score an early victory, rather than the first line of defense; Google likely has more up its sleeve if this tactic doesn't work.
Apple, Microsoft-backed 'Rockstar' uses Nortel patents to sue Google, Samsung and others
Early last year, the "Rockstar" consortium backed by Apple, Microsoft, BlackBerry, Sony and Ericsson closed its purchase of thousands of patents previously owned by Nortel for $4.5 billion (around the same time Google, after failing to purchase the patents itself, closed a $12 billion deal for Motorola). That transaction cleared the DOJ as the team agreed to license the tech on "fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms, as well as their commitments not to seek injunctions in disputes involving SEPs." According to Reuters, Rockstar -- along with another company, Netstar -- has picked today to file a lawsuit against Google over seven of the patents, reportedly covering the ability to match internet search terms to advertising. TechCrunch lists other lawsuits filed against cellphone manufacturers including Samsung, LG, ASUS, HTC, Pantech, ZTE and Huawei. All of these companies build Android-based devices, so it appears that despite all the other ongoing lawsuits and license agreements, it's time for another round of patent warfare to start.
