British Telecom sues Google over patent infringement

Posted on Dec 20 2011 - 4:00am by Julius

British Telecom (BT) has filed a lawsuit against search engine giant Google, alleging that its Android mobile operating system and its other services violate the telecommunications company’s patents.

BT, who filed the lawsuit in Delaware in the United States, said that Google’s Android infringed six of its key patents, including Google Music, location-based advertising, Google Maps and other products found in the Android Marketplace.

This lawsuit means that the British telco company is the new addition to a number of companies that are battling Android, including Apple, Microsoft, Oracle, eBay and Gemalto. If BT becomes successful with the lawsuit, Google and its partners may have to pay royalties to the company for every smartphone that they produce. This also means that BT will get lots of money as Android dominates the smartphone market, making more than 40 percent of sales and producing more than 40 million handsets every quarter.

“BT can confirm that it has commenced legal proceedings against Google by filing a claim with the US District Court of Delaware for patent infringement,” a BT spokesman told news publication The Guardian. “The patents in question relate to technologies which underpin location-based services, navigation and guidance information and personalised access to services and content. BT’s constant investment in innovation has seen it develop a large portfolio of patents which are valuable corporate assets.”

A number of companies complain that Google deliberately infringes their patents. Before his death earlier this year, Steve Jobs said that the Android OS is based on copied technology.

 

via: The Guardian

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