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by RandyRanderson 3334 days ago
Likely most of the other things mentioned here but also reducing the number of patents used in selling an android device:

http://www.zdnet.com/article/310-microsoft-patents-used-in-a...

1 comments

The majority of those patents are low quality and prior art laden. They were used to shake down Android OEM's that didn't want to go to court. Barnes & Noble called them on their extortion games and both companies immediately settled with Barnes & Noble also setting up a joint venture. Microsoft knows their junk and doesn't want to actually prove they aren't. Any court case involving an Android OEM will automatically get legal aid from Google in invalidating any patents presented.

According to an analysis by NCAM

  21% of Microsoft’s alleged Android portfolio scored as
  commercial versus 79% as non-commercial. This means
  that only one fifth of the portfolio was directly 
  commercially relevant, casting doubt the overall 
  viability of the Microsoft licensing packages on offer.

  There are a surprising amount of abandoned and expired 
  patents already in this space. Much of the Android 
  platform may, in fact, be a 'Freedom to Operate' space 
  and already part of the public domain. There may well 
  be alternatives to the Microsoft licensing packages 
  that could be assembled from the rich vein of patents 
  that occupy the 'Freedom to Operate' space.
>In sum, M-Cam's analysis suggests that Microsoft's claim to ownership of the Android OS may not be as strong as it has hitherto insisted it is and it asks:

  The question remains as to whether Microsoft actually owns proprietary rights 
  to the Android OS or is the company unfairly taxing device makers by exploiting 
  an uninformed belief in its supposed innovation?

http://www.i-programmer.info/news/193-android/7537-microsoft...

http://www.m-cam.com/sites/www.m-cam.com/files/Patently%20Ob...

https://seekingalpha.com/article/3545506-microsoft-sacrifici...