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Samsung, Microsoft Strike Patent Deal

Samsung Electronics Co. and Microsoft Corp. said Thursday they have entered into a patent licensing agreement focused on the technology companies' consumer electronics lines.

Samsung and Microsoft said the deal gives them access to the other's patents for existing and future inventions in categories including computers, televisions, digital video recorders and digital media players.

Financial terms were not disclosed, but the companies said in a joint news release that both will receive payments for past and future inventions. Microsoft and Samsung said the pact will speed up product development.

The Samsung agreement and other recent deals show how the world's largest software company has become more open to sharing technology and intellectual property in recent years, said David Kaefer, a Microsoft general manager for intellectual property licensing at Microsoft.

Suwon, South Korea-based Samsung is the world's largest memory chip maker and a leading producer of consumer electronics such as flat-screen televisions, mobile phones, MP3 players and laptop computers.

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