Patent disputes have been a constant cause of
headaches in the smartphone industry, but at least we
know that Google and LG Electronics won’t be hauling
each other down to the local courthouse anytime soon.
The two technology giants have just announced a long-
term global patent cross-licensing agreement.
The agreement doesn’t only cover smartphone patents,
it includes a whole range of products and technologies.
Given that Google now has its home automation and
TV products and that LG has a long history in
consumer electronics and is an influential Android
partner, it seems like a rather fair deal.
By working together on cross-licenses like
this, companies can focus on bringing
great products and services to consumers
around the world.
The deal includes all existing patents held by each
company and extends to cover all patents filed within
the next 10 years as well. Google and Samsung signed
a similar decade long deal back at the start of 2014 ,
with the aim of proving that cooperation is more
beneficial than squabbling.
The two companies have seemingly been on quite good
terms since hashing out a deal for LG’s well received
Nexus smartphones. This patent agreement indicates
that the two giants are happy to continue a mutually
beneficial arrangement over the coming years.
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