Patently Rich and Ready for a Takeover

Description

The Google/Motorola Mobility deal is a $12.5 billion reminder that these days, patents can be a company’s most valuable asset. Competition tangled with litigation only fuels the fire.

Google was propelled into the Motorola deal after being spurned in its $900 million pursuit of Nortel’s roughly 6,000 telecommunications patents. It’s not that Google was looking to apply them to revolutionizing Android. It was seeking to protect itself from patent infringement lawsuits.IBM ThinkPad T60 バッテリー

In a post on the Google blog at the time, Google Senior Vice President and General Counsel Kent Walker clarified the company’s intentions. "If successful, we hope this portfolio will not only create a disincentive for others to sue Google, but also help us, our partners and the open source community—which is integrally involved in projects like Android and Chrome—continue to innovate."Sony PCGA-BP51

Google’s defeat validated its fears. Apple, RIM, and Microsoft led a consortium and bought up the patents themselves for $4.5 billion, undoubtedly more than they were worth in terms of innovation, but invaluable for offense and defense in the patent fray.acer bt.00603.121

Patent infringement litigation is on the rise. The number of cases in the United States increased 23 percent, to 2,833 in 2010 from 2,296 in 2000, according to lawsuit tracker Lex Machina. A 2010 study from the Journal of the Patent and Trademark Office Society points to economics as a factor. On a micro-scale, extreme fluctuations in the U.S. economy, particularly contractions, result in a substantial increase in patent litigation.Acer UM09G31
Anecdotal evidence is plentiful. This week, the International Trade Commission began a trial to determine if Motorola infringed on nine Microsoft patents. Apple and Samsung constantly feud in the European Union over the Samsung Galaxy Tab tablet and the Samsung Galaxy S phone. InterDigital has brought up Nokia, Huawei, and ZTE on seven wireless patents infringements.Toshiba PABAS219

As the patent battles continue to rise, we decided to take a look at companies that might get enlisted.