Microsoft Files EU Antitrust Complaint Against Motorola Mobility

judgecorp writes "Microsoft has filed a complaint with the European Commission complaining that Motorola Mobility is charging too much for use of its patented technology in phones and tablets. The complaint follows a similar one by Apple last week, and will need to be resolved by Google as it takes charge of Motorola Mobility."

Comments

That's rich

[damicatz]

This is coming from a company that makes a business out of extorting Android phone makers for money.

Re:That's rich

[recoiledsnake]

Ew, I feel dirty even looking at that website name.

Reading that for information on Microsoft is like reading Glenn Beck for information on Obama.

It is abject partisan crap set to an agenda.

Re:That's rich

[jdgeorge]

Microsoft is an MPEG LA licensor. Motorola is not.

MPEG LA claims that Theora and VP8 infringe on its members' patents, and implies it will take legal action against users of those codecs.

Re:That's rich

[kelemvor4]

MS currently licence 2,300 patents relating to H.264 for 2 cents per unit. Google/Motorola want $22.50 for the remaining 50 patents it holds, per unit

Microsoft have entered cross licence deals for non FRAND patents with Android manufacturers.

That’s right. Just 2 cents for use of more than 2,300 patents. (Windows qualifies for a volume discount, but no one has to pay more than 20 cents per unit.) Motorola is demanding that Microsoft pay more than 1,000 times that for use of just 50 patents. And that is for a $1,000 laptop. For a $2,000 laptop, Motorola is demanding double the royalty - $45. Windows is the same on both laptops, and so is the video support in Windows.

This is unjustifiable on Motorolas part

If moto owns the patent they can charge whatever they like for it (so long as they charge everyone the same). They don't have to justify the price to anyone. If MS or Apple decides the price is too high, they can opt to not license the patent (and of course not use whatever is the subject of that patent). Just because MS and Apple may have decided to make their mobile phone business dependent on someone else's tech does not mean that other tech must be a particular price.

OTOH If MS wins this one, I may file suit against BMW because I think that the 6 series convertible should be closer to $200.00 than what it is today. I'll keep my eye out!

Re:That's rich

[icebike]

There are a lot of things for which MS has patents (allegedly, since every settlement is under NDA) and are using them to demand the $7.50 from B&N and all other Android devices. Standards that MS forced onto the industry, like Fat32, ExFat, MTP. The list goes on and on.

Being a standard doesn't mean much when MS patent prices are argued. So why should it mean anything now?

If you can't see thru this blatant attempt to sway public opinion while at the same time hiding its double dealing via holding foreign companies, and playing divide and conqueror together with Apple, then you learned nothing at all about Microsoft in the last two decades.

And which MS trolls modded GP to zero, when it is clearly directly on point?

Re:That's rich

[recoiledsnake]

The problem is that if this is allowed, all the companies will start suing each other over technology that they previously added to the standard on the promise of FRAND.

Eg. Look at the large number companies in the H.264 patent list. http://www.mpegla.com/main/programs/avc/Documents/avc-att1.pdf

Don't forget that MS has patents in the patent pool and a zillion other patents not in it. They can easily turn around and sue everyone in sight for exorbitant amounts for implementing standards.

And it will happen not just with H.264 but everything else too.

Imagine Nokia suing Motorola and Apple for $50 per phone for implementing LTE (a standard). You'd expect Apple and Motorola to rollout their own 4G network and towers?

Or MS suing Google over patents on Google docs importing MS Office documents (OOXML).

Pot, meet Kettle.

[Severus Snape]

I started to read the blog Microsoft wrote, I got as far as reading the title "Google: Please Don’t Kill Video on the Web" and couldn't read any more. Do Microsoft really think all of our memories are that short?

Re:Pot, meet Kettle.

[Anonymous Coward]

I started to read the blog Microsoft wrote, I got as far as reading the title "Google: Please Don’t Kill Video on the Web" and couldn't read any more. Do Microsoft really think all of our memories are that short?

You really should RTFA. Google is the hypocrite here.

Basically, Google was all, "Patents are evil! h.264 is patented and evil! Use WebM instead, we're giving it away free, out of the goodness of our patent-hating, royalty-eschewing hearts!" Remember that?

Now Google, by way of Motorola, is proving its own point by charging obscene percentage-based royalties on h.264. Meaning, instead of charging a set rate, it charges a percentage of the sale price of the device. So apparently, to Motogoogle, the exact same h.264 decoder function is worth 3x as much in a $300 phone than in a $100 phone.

Apple is has filed complaints against Motogoogle over the exact same thing, but of course Apple is evil, like Microsoft, and unlike Google, which Does No Evil.

Overplayed Their Hand

[Anonymous Coward]

(Posting AC because I'm at work)

Motorola overplayed their hand. They are abusing FRAND patents and they are going to be taken to task for it. It might take years to play out but it will end poorly for them. And, frankly, everyone on Slashdot should hope that is the outcome because the thought of any company with FRAND patents being able to abuse them as Motorola has been doing is a terrifying thought - it would stifle entire industries. It is anti-competitive in the very worst sort of ways. Anyone who thinks that Motorola should get away with this just because of who they are or who their opponents are isn't thinking this process through...

Great timing

[viperidaenz]

Just as Google takes control.... Haven't Motorola been selling these licenses for like 10 years? Why is it only anti competitive now? Did they increase the prices more than inflation? My guess is the price is the same as it was years ago so they're effectively cheaper now and Microsoft, Apple and Google just hate each other.

Oh Boo Hoo Microsoft

[Nom du Keyboard]

Oh boo hoo Microsoft. No sympathy here. Your extortion of Linux users, Android users, USB drive users, and pretty much everyone else in the computer industry for some of the most questionable patents earns you no sympathy here. And that's not to mention your threats where you won't even list the patents allegedly infringed that you're threatening over. And even that's not to mention how questionable some of these patents are. And that even further not to mention that patent trolls you've enabled when you haven't wanted to get your own hands dirty. And still not to mention how your licensing terms give you control over future hardware design decisions for devices that you don't even manufacture yourself (thank you Barnes & Noble Nook) And now you cry foul? You are pathetic!

Re:Oh Boo Hoo Microsoft

[Anonymous Coward]

So it's ok for Motorola to anti-competitively abuse an industry because Microsoft acted poorly in the past and you don't like them? I do believe that's about as succinct a summary of the short-sighted opinions that are flowing in this thread...

Nature of the patent

[aepervius]

I am guessing MS only ask for 2 cent, because out of those 2000+ patents most are trivial. Now the question is are those 50 patent on motorola mobility trivial ?