On May 31, 2012, Google filed a complaint with the European Antimonopoly Committee, in which it accused Microsoft and Nokia of intending to engage in "patent trolling." According to analysts, the alliance, which produces Lumia smartphones, decided in this way to conduct unfair competition with manufacturers of gadgets on Android OS in order to increase sales of its own products.
About the history of the issue
In 2011, Nokia and Microsoft teamed up to launch the Windows Phone-based Lumia smartphones. Thus, Nokia planned to improve its clearly shaken position in the mobile device market and entered into a tough competition with gadgets based on the much more popular IOS and Android operating systems.
Soon after the release of the first Lumia line, the newly formed alliance unexpectedly struck a deal with the Canadian company Mosaid Technologies, which transferred the rights to 2,000 patents and patent applications previously held by Nokia and Microsoft to Mosaid.
The Canadian company itself does not produce any gadgets and is not going to do so yet - this aroused the suspicions of analysts at Google Inc. They suggested that Mosaid is a "troll" who, in conspiracy with Nokia and Microsoft, intends to declare a "patent war" on Android, and therefore on its owner, Google.
About "patent trolling"
"Patent trolling" is not uncommon in global business. For clarity, we can cite the Russian example of the late 90s, when enterprising residents of the Moscow region patented an "invention" called "Glass vessel", which turned out to be an ordinary bottle. Possessing a patent, the cunning "inventors" tried to sue some of the profits from the manufacturers of various kinds of drinks bottled in glass containers.
Still, such a phenomenon is very rare in Russia. But in the United States, such a business is flourishing. Especially in the field of telecommunications and Hi-Tech, where more than a dozen or even hundreds of patents are used in the production of the final product, which means that weaknesses and legal loopholes for filing legal claims are not at all difficult to find. After all, even technologies honestly developed by different people independently of each other often lead to similar results. For example, who do you think invented the radio? Popov or Marconi?
Conflict development
It is worth noting that neither Mosaid Technologies, let alone Nokia or Microsoft, took any action against Google as a manufacturer of Android devices. The complaint to the European Antimonopoly Committee was an attempt to protect oneself from possible troubles. According to Google analysts, Mosaid owns about 1,200 key technologies in the mobile industry, over which it is possible to bring legal claims. The alleged "patent trolling", according to Google representatives, could have resulted in higher prices for mobile devices, as well as the introduction of restrictions on the sale of gadgets with Android OS, which would force consumers to buy smartphones with Windows OS.
However, Google did not take into account that it itself is actually a monopoly. Microsoft representatives did not apply to notice that Google. Inc controls more than 90% of Internet search and advertising and, in turn, filed a complaint with the EU antitrust office. Now, if Google does not take appropriate measures to resolve the conflict, it can be subject to sanctions - a fine. Or they will generally restrict the use of Google services in Europe.
However, that's another story.
