Microsoft wants an injunction against sales of Kyocera phones
Microsoft on March 6, filed a lawsuit against device-manufacturer Kyocera alleging the Japanese company is infringing on Microsoft patents related to battery life, location and movement sensors, among other elements.
Microsoft has asked the U.S. District Court in Seattle for monetary damages as well as an order that would stop Kyocera from selling its Duraforce, Hydro and Brigadier product lines.
Analyst Boris Metodiev of 451 Research said “it’s very likely” Kyocera will go the route other firms have and license the technology from Microsoft.
“What is very interesting, and rarely revealed, is how much exactly vendors have to pay Microsoft to use Google’s ‘free’ operating system,” he said. “At the end of the day, this is not about patents and royalty fees, but a battle between ecosystems. Microsoft wants to encourage device manufacturers to use its operating system, which is free for [9-inch] devices and smaller, and it puts pressure on them paying up for the use of Android, because of the Microsoft patents used in it.”
In its complaint, Microsoft calls out competitors for letting others invest in research and development.
From the document: “Although research and development comes at great cost and risk, Microsoft was founded on innovation, and the company continues to choose the path of the innovators. But others have a different approach, waiting for innovators like Microsoft to bear the expense of developing new technologies and then incorporating the most successful inventions into their own products – without permission and without paying for the privilege.”
Microsoft VP and Deputy General Counsel David Howard said, in a prepared statement, “We respect Kyocera but we believe they need to license the patented technology they are using. We’re hopeful this case can be resolved amicably.”
Kyocera was well-represented at Mobile World Congress 2015 in Barcelona, Spain, earlier this month, showcasing some of the very phones subject to Microsoft’s complaint.
Microsoft has licensure agreements in place with other smartphone makers like Samsung, LG and HTC.
