Innovationpartners

In a move called “the latest step in the patent arms race” Microsoft has just secured access to 1100 patents from AOL. MS has bought 800 of the patents and licensed the remaining 300 for a total of 1.056 bn $…which is a whole lot of cash.
I’m not sure it’s so much an arms race. In the old days MS would have bought the company, but since its only interested in the tech it just aquires the patents…makes sense.
It is like the big planets with the big IT companies – the bigger they get the more pull they have on other things in the universe.
Wired reports that the AOL patents has been auctioned meaning that other companies (Google, Apple etc. ) have also been offered an opportunity to get the patents.