UPDATED 10:15 EDT / OCTOBER 14 2011

Google’s Not Privy to Microsoft-Android Licensing Details; Hands Tied

We learned a few things from Google’s earnings call yesterday, pushing stocks up by 7% in pre-market trading this morning.  Thanks to mobile, Google’s on a steady upswing as it sweeps OS shares across a hungry audience. They’ve already manufactured 190 million Android devices, and their mobile revenue is up to $2.5 billion, or $625 million per quarter.

Most of Google’s revenue comes from the mobile sector, as Android devices sprout like mushrooms after the rain.   Though Android has generated significant revenue, it also brought them some problems like patent infringement cases from Oracle, Apple and Microsoft.  It’s been an indirect confrontation for Microsoft, leaving even Google unaware of just how lucrative its licensing deals for Android and Chrome could become.

And so Google partners try to wizen up, even as they fall prey to Microsoft’s mounting pressure.   It’s a two-fold benefit to Microsoft, which has been inking in manufacturing contracts alongside the licensing deals.   It’s a strategy that leaves Google’s hands tied, as the Android maker is not privy to the details forged between Microsoft and Android manufacturers.  Google CEO Larry Page is left to make his own assumptions, which he shares after being asked what his company is doing to help its manufacturers fight off legal trouble.

“Rather than see Microsoft compete in the marketplace with their own smartphones, they have really continued to resorting to legal measures to hassle their own customers, right? So, it seems kind of odd. We haven’t seen the details of those total agreements. I suspect that our partners are making good deals for themselves there,” writes Businessweek.

Google’s been known to help its partners in some instances, rising to the occasion when HTC was taken to court with a lawsuit from Apple.   But in the case of Microsoft’s licensing strategy, it seems Google is less able to sway the deal terms themselves.  What Google has done, however, is bulked up its patent portfolio.  The move to acquire Motorola Mobility, still under federal consideration, helps Android patch a few holes.  On both the patent and the manufacturing sides, a Motorola buy gives Google a more solidified Android offering.  It’s made things quite awkward for Google, as its latest acquisition target is in the midst of a fierce legal battle of its own against Microsoft.


A message from John Furrier, co-founder of SiliconANGLE:

Your vote of support is important to us and it helps us keep the content FREE.

One click below supports our mission to provide free, deep, and relevant content.  

Join our community on YouTube

Join the community that includes more than 15,000 #CubeAlumni experts, including Amazon.com CEO Andy Jassy, Dell Technologies founder and CEO Michael Dell, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, and many more luminaries and experts.

“TheCUBE is an important partner to the industry. You guys really are a part of our events and we really appreciate you coming and I know people appreciate the content you create as well” – Andy Jassy

THANK YOU