News

Microsoft Pays Smartphone Patent Royalties to Access Co

Microsoft paid royalties on smartphone patents held by Access Co. Ltd., according to an announcement issued on Thursday.

The patents involved weren't disclosed. The news came via a jointly issued press release from Tokyo-based Access Co. Ltd. and Newport Beach, Calif.-based Acacia Research Corp. It's not clear why Acacia Research was involved in the settlement since the patents were held by Access. However, Acacia specializes in partnering with inventors and patent holders and licensing those technologies to corporations.

Some of the patented technologies were originally devised by other companies, including "Palm, Palmsource, Bell Communications Research and Geoworks," according to the announcement. Apparently, HP, which announced the acquisition of Palm Inc. in April, doesn't hold the patent that was licensed. An HP spokesperson explained that "when Palm spun off PalmSource the patent portfolio was split up as well. ACCESS eventually bought what was left of PalmSource, including the patents it held."

Microsoft confirmed on Friday that it had paid the royalties.

"By focusing on efficiently licensing patented innovations from other companies, we're free to develop great software and we're able to provide our partners and customers IP peace-of-mind," stated David Kaefer, general manager of intellectual property and licensing at Microsoft, in a prepared statement.

Microsoft settled a patent dispute in April with its partner HTC, which makes mobile devices. This month, Microsoft announced that it is suing Motorola over patents allegedly used by the Android Linux-based mobile operating system. The Motorola dispute mirrors Microsoft's claims in the HTC lawsuit, which also targeted Android.

Mobile litigation and settlements have seemingly hit a fever pitch as Microsoft prepares for an unveiling of Windows Phone 7-based devices on Oct. 11. Horatio Gutierrez, Microsoft's corporate vice president and deputy general counsel of intellectual property and licensing, has indicated in statements that mobile lawsuits have moved beyond disputes over the radio component, especially as smartphones have begun to take on the functionality of PCs.

Still, the litigation hasn't always trended in Microsoft's favor. Microsoft's court losses to Toronto-based i4i led Microsoft to argue that the standards for disproving patents are too high. In that case, Microsoft disputed i4i's patent on "custom XML" technology, which was found to have been used in Microsoft Word.

About the Author

Kurt Mackie is senior news producer for 1105 Media's Converge360 group.

Featured

  • Microsoft Offers Support Extensions for Exchange 2016 and 2019

    Microsoft has introduced a paid Extended Security Update (ESU) program for on-premises Exchange Server 2016 and 2019, offering a crucial safety cushion as both versions near their Oct. 14, 2025 end-of-support date.

  • An image of planes flying around a globe

    2025 Microsoft Conference Calendar: For Partners, IT Pros and Developers

    Here's your guide to all the IT training sessions, partner meet-ups and annual Microsoft conferences you won't want to miss.

  • Notebook

    Microsoft Centers AI, Security and Partner Dogfooding at MCAPS

    Microsoft's second annual MCAPS for Partners event took place Tuesday, delivering a volley of updates and directives for its partners for fiscal 2026.

  • Microsoft Layoffs: AI Is the Obvious Elephant in the Room

    As Microsoft doubles down on an $80 billion bet on AI this fiscal year, its workforce reductions are drawing scrutiny over whether AI's ascent is quietly reshaping its human capital strategy, even as official messaging avoids drawing a direct line.