News
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.