October 13, 2012 at 22:59Google has serious problems with Microsoft and FTC antitrust monitors
Google is planning a very difficult period in the near future, which will begin in late autumn / early winter this year. The problems affect two areas - the patent tumor, which grew on the Android OS, as well as a serious investigation by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which seeks evidence of Google’s abuse of its monopoly position in the search engine market.
In Germany, where the intellectual property court has the most simplified procedural procedure, the “daughter” of the search engine, Motorola Mobility, has serious problems. Not only are all Motorola Android-based products banned from being imported into Germany and sold in the Motorola online store due to three patents (yes, there’s nothing on the German Motorola website ), Microsoft is still pushing to sue patent EP0845124 describing the operation of map services. As you know, all Motorola smartphones are certified Google Play, so they include the Google Maps application, which violates the Microsoft patent.
But the most curious thing is not even a patent infringement, which is no longer a novelty for Android, but the fact that Microsoft demanded that Google be involved as the second respondent, since it is the application developer, it is also the full owner of Motorola Mobility and is responsible for violations . Thus, the “glorious” tradition of persecuting Google partners is interrupted, and the Open Handset Alliance is struck at the heart of the search giant.
Yes, Google is not the first time to act as the second defendant in Android cases, previously in Nokia vs. HTC in the US Google intervened, but on their own.
Thus, pushing in Germany, Microsoft forces Google to accept the terms of the world proposed back in July. The guys from Mountain View are not in a hurry to negotiate with Redmond, but there is no solution to the patent problem yet, except for the general words of Schmidt and Drummand that competitors are trying to crush Android with patent products rather than high-quality ones.
While there is a patent war in Germany, the US Federal Trade Commission (an analogue of the Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service) is conducting an investigation in which it suspects Google of violating US antitrust laws in the form of abuse of the monopoly in the search engine market to promote its own products.
The reason for the investigation was the numerous complaints of Yelp, Nextag and several other services that Google specifically manipulates the results of issuance to bring their products above the products of these services, forcing them to pay for advertising for a sponsored place in the issuance. Google in the person of Eric Schmidt in the autumn of that year, said in the Senate that no manipulations are being carried out, but equal conditions are used for everyone. The Senate and Congress believed in Eric's words, but the FTC nevertheless began an investigation, identifying five commissioners who collected the necessary information and evidence over the year. According to unnamed sources in the Commission, four commissioners spoke in favor of starting a prosecution, and one was skeptical of the charges. So far, no official claims have been filed with the search giant, but the head of the FTC, John Leibovitz,
According to established practice, Google has two options: admit violations and enter into an agreement with the Commission. This will lead to an insignificant fine and a requirement to submit options for correcting violations within a certain period of time. The second option is to deny all the allegations, which will lead to one of the high-profile processes after a similar process against Microsoft, which almost led to the division of the company. Of course, the process will be lengthy, and Google will have a chance to win it, but in case of failure, we can’t get off with a small fine.
The emerging “prospects” instantly affected Google quotes. Shares fell by almost 1%, and the company lost $ 2.5 billion in capitalization, losing the recently won second place in the list of the most expensive IT companies.
Based on Reuters and ComputerWorld
Android, Motorola Mobility and Microsoft
In Germany, where the intellectual property court has the most simplified procedural procedure, the “daughter” of the search engine, Motorola Mobility, has serious problems. Not only are all Motorola Android-based products banned from being imported into Germany and sold in the Motorola online store due to three patents (yes, there’s nothing on the German Motorola website ), Microsoft is still pushing to sue patent EP0845124 describing the operation of map services. As you know, all Motorola smartphones are certified Google Play, so they include the Google Maps application, which violates the Microsoft patent.
But the most curious thing is not even a patent infringement, which is no longer a novelty for Android, but the fact that Microsoft demanded that Google be involved as the second respondent, since it is the application developer, it is also the full owner of Motorola Mobility and is responsible for violations . Thus, the “glorious” tradition of persecuting Google partners is interrupted, and the Open Handset Alliance is struck at the heart of the search giant.
Yes, Google is not the first time to act as the second defendant in Android cases, previously in Nokia vs. HTC in the US Google intervened, but on their own.
Thus, pushing in Germany, Microsoft forces Google to accept the terms of the world proposed back in July. The guys from Mountain View are not in a hurry to negotiate with Redmond, but there is no solution to the patent problem yet, except for the general words of Schmidt and Drummand that competitors are trying to crush Android with patent products rather than high-quality ones.
Google vs. FTC
While there is a patent war in Germany, the US Federal Trade Commission (an analogue of the Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service) is conducting an investigation in which it suspects Google of violating US antitrust laws in the form of abuse of the monopoly in the search engine market to promote its own products.
The reason for the investigation was the numerous complaints of Yelp, Nextag and several other services that Google specifically manipulates the results of issuance to bring their products above the products of these services, forcing them to pay for advertising for a sponsored place in the issuance. Google in the person of Eric Schmidt in the autumn of that year, said in the Senate that no manipulations are being carried out, but equal conditions are used for everyone. The Senate and Congress believed in Eric's words, but the FTC nevertheless began an investigation, identifying five commissioners who collected the necessary information and evidence over the year. According to unnamed sources in the Commission, four commissioners spoke in favor of starting a prosecution, and one was skeptical of the charges. So far, no official claims have been filed with the search giant, but the head of the FTC, John Leibovitz,
According to established practice, Google has two options: admit violations and enter into an agreement with the Commission. This will lead to an insignificant fine and a requirement to submit options for correcting violations within a certain period of time. The second option is to deny all the allegations, which will lead to one of the high-profile processes after a similar process against Microsoft, which almost led to the division of the company. Of course, the process will be lengthy, and Google will have a chance to win it, but in case of failure, we can’t get off with a small fine.
The emerging “prospects” instantly affected Google quotes. Shares fell by almost 1%, and the company lost $ 2.5 billion in capitalization, losing the recently won second place in the list of the most expensive IT companies.
Based on Reuters and ComputerWorld