Patent wars 2.0 - Google: enough is enough

Apple has been busy for atleast the past 2 years with continues lawsuits against Andriod well.. the companies that come with Andriod devices. 4 Days ago as Samsung was charged guility and has to pay Apple 1.05 Billion dollars as most of you probably have heard. For technical details behind the case you should read this.


As I said those lawsuits have been going on for quite sometime now but today Google steps up, or should I say Motorola? Google was always lurking in the background of the lawsuits but now they are standing up with the patents the got from taking over Motorola to defend their Android

"Google and Motorola are claiming patent infringement for non-standard essential patents. To put it simply, Google-rola has filed a case for a patent that courts cannot legally force companies to license, meaning that if they win this case, Apple could be forced to completely stop using the technology in their devices.

"This is a big one for Google and for Apple. This isn’t just an OEM that Apple is dealing with now. This is one of the most powerful (if not THE most powerful) movers and shakers in the world. If this comes to trial, Apple will have its hands full, and might even be forced to rely on Microsoft for backup."

Little explaination on essential / non- essential patents:
A patent is essential when you cannot do industry standard things without it. A patent on a wheel (assuming one could be granted) would be an essential patent.
If Google sues using essential patents then even if they win, the court can force them to license the patent to Apple for a fair value. Google gets money, but that's it. This keeps patents from destroying entire industries, at least in theory (in reality, they still destroy smaller industries with regularity).
If Google sues using non-essential patents then the court cannot force Google to license the patents. Instead, Apple may have to pull infringing products from its stores, which is far more damaging.



Sources:
http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/yxm7a/google_has_had_enough_files_lawsuit_to_ban/
http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/24/apple-v-samsung-decision/
http://www.androidpit.com/google-vs-apple-android

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