In a move that will hopefully start a trend that eventually kills off the patent wars that have plagued the tech industry for the past few years, Samsung and Google have reached an agreement to license each other’s patents. The deal, announced by Samsung on Monday, will see the two companies cross-license each other’s patents covering IP that spans a wide range of technologies for 10 years.
“We’re pleased to enter into a cross-license with our partner Samsung,” said Allen Lo, Google’s Deputy General Counsel for Patents. “By working together on agreements like this, companies can reduce the potential for litigation and focus instead on innovation.”
Samsung says the deal will grant each company access to the other’s massive patent portfolio and allow the two companies to work more closely in the future. It will be interesting to see how that works out over time as Samsung works to slowly lessen its reliance on Android. And perhaps… just perhaps… this deal might be an indication of Samsung’s increased willingness to negotiate as it enters a new round of discussions with Apple.
“This agreement with Google is highly significant for the technology industry,” Samsung’s Intellectual Property Center head Seungho Ahn said. “Samsung and Google are showing the rest of the industry that there is more to gain from cooperating than engaging in unnecessary patent disputes.”
