Text 18803, 97 rader
Skriven 2007-06-16 08:47:50 av mike (1:379/45)
Ärende: Microsoft Enlists Allies for Apple Fight
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From: mike <mike@barkto.com>


http://www.thestreet.com/_yahoo/newsanalysis/techsoftware/10362839.html?cm_ven=
YAHOO&amp;cm_cat=FREE&amp;cm_ite=NA

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Microsoft (MSFT) has been on a partnership tear, inking cross-licensing and
interoperability agreements with Linux developers and makers of consumer
electronics.

Its latest collaboration -- with Linux desktop-operating-system developer
Linspire, announced Thursday -- is the third Linux-related deal Microsoft has
cut in just the first two weeks of June.

Microsoft also announced deals with Korean device maker LG Electronics to share
patents, many of them for Linux, and with Linux platform developer Xandros.
Earlier in the year, Microsoft made similar deals with Novell (NOVL) , Samsung,
Fuji Xerox, NEC and Seiko Epson.

LG will be allowed to use Microsoft's patents in LG Linux-based embedded
devices, according to the companies.

By signing with some of the consumer electronic giants that own intellectual
property, Microsoft is building an ecosystem of partners to go up against their
mutual foe: Apple (AAPL) , according to Gerry Kaufhold, principal analyst at
In-Stat.

Apple has "thrown fear into the consumer electronics industry," due to the
speed with which it can bring highly integrated products to market, he says.
All major consumer electronics companies have a strategic initiative to counter
Apple's dominance, he adds.

Microsoft used to be the guy that no device maker wanted to do business with,
but "Apple is now the evil empire, and Microsoft is the alternative," he says.
"It's the rest of the consumer electronics industry gearing up to meet Apple."

The LG agreement was forged to enhance the links between Microsoft's Home Media
Server and portable devices that can download content from the server so users
can take it with them, Kaufhold says.

Many portable media devices will use Linux, he says.

For Microsoft, it furthers the company's preparation to counter Apple's iPhone,
which promises to deliver voice and multimedia.

"Even though people consider Microsoft to be a proprietary platform, they make
it very easy for third parties to work with them," Kaufold says. By obtaining
and sharing Microsoft and Linux-related patents, third-party development
becomes much easier. Without Microsoft's assistance, device makers working with
Linux have to build from the ground up. But Microsoft's embedded support for
Windows gives them a tool kit, reducing their time to market.

What hasn't been disclosed is whether the patent licensing agreement enables
sublicensing of the intellectual property to third parties. "Many patent
cross-license agreements have provisions that specify what parties can and
cannot do to sublicense their patent rights to other third parties," David
Kaefer, general manager of IP and licensing for Microsoft, said in an email
response to questions. The company does not discuss details of such contracts
because of confidentiality provisions. LG did not respond to a request for
information.

"If Microsoft has this well-developed pool of licensable IP, everybody
benefits," Kaufhold says. Consumer electronics is undergoing tremendous
pressure; smoothing the way for licensing and sharing of intellectual property
is a big enabler.

"Third-party developers win because they can go to Microsoft and quickly create
a product," he says. "All the IP [rights] fall into place."

The consumer electronics industry will see the fruits of the patent agreements
in about 12 months, with products intended for the 2008 holiday shopping
season, Kaufhold said.

"Apple creates closed gardens," says tech consultant Jon Peddie. "Everything is
Apple-derived," whereas Microsoft publicly favored open systems. The downside
is that open standards get customized in the hands of individual companies, he
added.

Peddie questions whether the Microsoft-LG agreement actually enables
sublicensing of patents. Such agreements usually don't allow transference of
the patent rights to other parties, he says.

But Peddie notes that high-level interoperability seems to be an overriding
concern for the software giant. "When Xbox Live was announced, they spoke about
creating the opportunity for people with mobile devices to engage friends in
games, subject to the capabilities of the platform they were on," he says.

A legal ecosystem in which software and device makers can turn on a dime is
needed to make such device-aware, cross-platform systems a reality. Microsoft
seems to be growing just such a habitat.
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  /m

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