Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

EU Warns Nokia Not To Become a Patent Troll

Posted by samzenpus on from the play-nice dept.

Barence writes "The vice president of the European Commission's Competition unit has warned Nokia not to become a 'patent troll'. Nokia is in the process of selling its devices business to Microsoft, giving rise to fears that the remaining part of Nokia will make more aggressive use of its patents portfolio. Vice president Joaquin Almunia said that the commission had dismissed the possibility that 'Nokia would be tempted to behave like a patent troll' when it cleared the way for Microsoft to acquire Nokia's devices division – but warned that 'if Nokia were to take illegal advantage of its patents in the future, we will open an antitrust case.' 'I sincerely hope we will not have to,' said Almunia."

13 of 78 comments (clear)

  1. Oh dear by girlintrainingpants · · Score: 4, Funny

    When I worked at Microsoft, we were joking about how this would happen. One guy I knew about in another department actually got canned over just the joking. He literally said "Lolwut" when they fired him. They don't take this stuff lightly anymore!

    1. Re:Oh dear by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Microsoft in general don't take too kindly to jokes and fun any more in general.

      I miss the fun Microsoft, the cool developer-friendly Microsoft that were only dickish in a business sense.
      Now they are just plain old dicks.
      Expect Microsoft Research to get scaled back horribly in the coming years as well, they already killed some developer-related services as it is.
      MSR, MSDN and all the dev-related groups were great while they lasted.
      Likewise with Google and how they just killed theirs pretty much. RIP Google Labs.

    2. Re:Oh dear by pspahn · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Sounds like your friend was one of the lucky ones.

      Last time I got canned, I was told part of it was because of my "toxic attitude". A few days prior I had sent an email describing how to do something correctly (based on industry accepted practices) and had a conversation with the "Director" about some of the developers in India that were making a mess of several of my projects (he told me to send the email).

      After they gave me my severance and I got home, I started to realize just how lucky I was. Thank god I don't work for that outfit anymore.

      --
      Someone flopped a steamer in the gene pool.
  2. Typical american slasdotters by bazmail · · Score: 5, Insightful

    American Slashdotter: "Our government ought to do something about these god damned patent trolls!!!!"

    European Government actually does something about patent trolls.

    American Slashdotter: "Damn europeans! Always picking on our good ol hard workin corporations. Its about freedom and choice. Don't they get it."

    1. Re:Typical american slasdotters by ericloewe · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Nokia is as far from a patent troll as you can get. Unfortunately, many just assume that because they sue everyone and their mother they're trolling. They sue everyone and their mother because they invented many crucial parts of the thing everyone and their mother owns.

      Besides, since when is Nokia a "good ol hard workin [American] corporation"?

    2. Re:Typical american slasdotters by MickyTheIdiot · · Score: 4, Insightful

      This American Slashdotter thinks it's good. Companies and people should be regulated in proportion to the harm they are capable of doing. Monsanto, a corporation that has literally created PCBs that cover the entire planet, should be regulated to hell. The corner small businessperson shouldn't. I don't see how that is unreasonable.

    3. Re:Typical american slasdotters by bazmail · · Score: 4, Informative

      The European courts have teeth. The US prosecutors just caved in their prosecution of MS. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Union_Microsoft_competition_case

      "In March 2004, the EU ordered Microsoft to pay €497 million ($794 million or £381 million)...."

  3. Re:TROLLL.. TROLL! by bmo · · Score: 4, Informative

    > Particularly ones where they have no product that they offer,

    This is exactly what is going on. What's left of Nokia won't have any manufacturing capacity or products. Another NPE.

    >Motorola

    Motorola makes actual products.

    Being this dumb should hurt.

    --
    BMO

  4. Re:TROLLL.. TROLL! by alexander_686 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The difference is that Motorola is actually making phones and doing research while Nokia is just riding the coattails of a division that no longer exists.

    Since Motorola is still in the game it still uses other people patents. If they are a dick towards others then the other patent holders will be dicks towards Motorola. There is an incentive for Motorola to play fair. Nokia does not have that restraint. They could be huge dicks and the other handset manufactures could not retaliate directly against them. Not saying that Nokia will be a dick – just that they could.

  5. What he actually said by Krakadoom · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Nowhere does it say that Nokia cannot leverage it's patent portfolio and make a business out of that. The operative word in the Commission statement is "illegal". Being a patent-owning business (and nothing else) is not illegal, nor is licensing the property for considerable fees. Heck, suing for profit isn't either. So the actual value of this statement is minor.

  6. Kingmaker, self by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 3, Interesting

    "but warned that 'if Nokia were to take illegal advantage of its patents in the future, we will open an antitrust case.' 'I sincerely hope we will not have to,' said Almunia."

    This behavior by government officials is, or should be, illegal. Patent trolls are bad, but officials threatening to withhold licensing or "review" it for legal behaviors that have nothing to do with the issue in question is a gross, kingly abuse of power.

    If patent troll behavior of the remnant is illegal, you deal with that directly as a criminal issue.

    --
    (-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
    1. Re:Kingmaker, self by AmiMoJo · · Score: 3, Informative

      They are reacting to the tact that Nokia seems to have divested itself of all physical products and its OS, so how what is left looks kinda like a patent holding company. Of course Nokia say they are R&D, which is fine, the EU is just reminding then that will act quicky in a market that is full of trolls and patent abusers.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
  7. Keep in mind by MoronGames · · Score: 4, Informative

    In 2016, Nokia can re-enter the cell phone market under its own name. This may mean them going back into designing their own phones, or purchasing Jolla, the spin-off company run by former Nokia engineers. Jolla has already put a very nice looking low-end cell phone on the market, and I expect them to continue to build out their smart phone portfolio in the near future. I can definitely see them once again becoming a part of Nokia in 2016. I don't think Nokia would be content to remain a patent-only business. Also, keep in mind, they are retaining their very lucrative mapping business as well.

    --
    hey!