SEOUL
Samsung and Google have signed a global patent cross-license agreement covering a broad range of technologies and business areas. The deal includes the application of existing patents and any filed over the next decade.
Seoul-based Samsung on Monday provided few details in a statement posted online.
Samsung and Google already work together closely, with the Korean electronics maker using Google's search engines´ Android mobile operating system.
“We’re pleased to enter into a cross-license with our partner Samsung,” said Allen Lo, Deputy General Counsel for Patents at Google. “By working together on agreements like this, companies can reduce the potential for litigation and focus instead on innovation.”
The global patent agreement between two companies is also expected to strengthen their position against Apple, which has filed lawsuits worth billion of dollars for alleged patent infringement.
“With this agreement, Samsung and Google gain access to each other’s industry-leading patent portfolios, paving the way for deeper collaboration on research and development of current and future products and technologies,” the statement said.
“This agreement with Google is highly significant for the technology industry,” said Dr. Seungho Ahn, the Head of Samsung’s Intellectual Property Center. “Samsung and Google are showing the rest of the industry that there is more to gain from cooperating than engaging in unnecessary patent disputes".
Samsung, the South Korean multinational company, is the world's largest maker of consumer electronics such as smartphones and televisions, mobile phones and tablets.
Google, the world´s largest search engine company, is an American multinational corporation specializing in Internet-related services and products. These include search, cloud computing, software, and online advertising technologies. Google owns Android mobile operating system that Samsung use in its mobile devices.
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