On August 15th, Google announced its intentions to acquire Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion and Motorola’s competitors all voiced support for the deal, suggesting the acquisition would help each company fight in patent battles against Apple and Microsoft. FossPatents, however, recently revealed a document that suggests Motorola Mobility could soon have the upper hand when it comes to new Android builds. An internal document that was released by a judge in the Oracle vs. Google case says Google should provide Motorola Mobility with the latest versions of the Android operating system ahead of its competitors:
- Do not develop in the open. Instead, make source code available after innovation is complete
- Lead device concept: Give early access to the software to partners who build and distribute devices to our specification (ie, Motorola and Verizon). They get a non-contractual time to market advantage and in return they align to our standard.
As FossPatents points out, it is unlikely the above information is simply about Google’s Nexus line of products. As we’ve exclusively reported, Google’s first Android 4.0 “Ice Cream Sandwich” phone will be made by Samsung. In addition, Google typically markets its Nexus products under its own name, not that of other handset manufacturers, so Motorola’s brand wouldn’t get the benefit. Either way, we can’t say we’re surprised by the proposed strategy to give Motorola the lead. Read on for an image of the court document.
