[dlikhten]

To be honest, I knew this was going to happen. Apple made the lawsuit against samsung, but google has a big BIG bomb to throw: Map Reduce. If google whips out map reduce, apple is screwed. Basically without it apple will be VERY hard pressed to do business, it's techniques are used by many frameworks in the iphone. This would be the equivalent of the US throwing the a-bomb on japan. Apple being japan.

Apple, with googarolla's lawsuit, may have actually realized just how big of a bear they hit.

Now, I sure hope the dispute ends, BUT as yequalsx points out this is a dangerous slope. While I don't believe they will form a patent cartel, a 4th party trying to create a new mobile os will be in danger. While google won't sue, Applesoft might.

[spacemanaki]

> it's techniques are used by many frameworks in the iphone.

Can you elaborate, or point to some further reading? I don't know that much about MapReduce or the iPhone, and I definitely don't know what kinds of patent Google holds related to MapReduce, but isn't MapReduce a framework for breaking up work to be done in a distributed fashion and then collating results? Is anything like that actually used in the iPhone?

I know what the functions "map" and "reduce" do, but those weren't invented by Google, and MR is only kind of related to them, from what I've read.

[spiralpolitik]

The concepts that MapReduce uses were being discussed at least as early as the 90s. My parallel programming module in 1995 had a section on parallelizing programs using map and reduce functions so there is enough prior art on the concepts to make any patent defense on the general concepts difficult if not impossible.

[spacemanaki]

Also interesting, as I said I don't know much about it or the patents involved. The parent of my comment claimed the iPhone contained something that infringed on MapReduce patents, that was the thing I was questioning.

[nl]

Google has a lot of other patents Apple would be more worried about that Map/Reduce.

I'm not aware of any use at all of Map/Reduce in the iPhone(!)

[Steko]

The whole "patents kill new entrants" idea has kind of been exploded by the fact that two companies that didn't make phone OS's 6 years ago and didn't have a lot of mobile IP now have close to 90% of the market.

[djloche]

Apple bought up several companies that did have relevant patents and technology. Google did the same thing.

In the age of nuclear patents, you either have to have tons of money to license patents, buy companies that own patents, or successfully be granted patents.

[Steko]

Why do I need tons of money to be granted a patent? Or license? What hypothetical new entrant to commercial scale phone design and manufacturing doesn't have any money?

[CamperBob2]

OK, fine. "Patents kill new entrants who don't have multibillion-dollar war chests." Does that work better?

[Steko]

It might sound better but it doesn't align with the fact that not only Apple and Google are new entrants but the field is flooded with more competition then ever before.

Apple blasted open the gates at the carriers and now the writing is on the wall: build a better mousetrap and they will come. Android/linux is a set of cheap building blocks.

[SCdF]

I'm sorry, this is a bit OT, but your last sentence has a lot of metaphor in it. Like, a lot.

I just wanted to lean back and appreciate how rich language is.

[Steko]

I certainly meant it in the most positive way. I'm a big iOS fan but I'm also a big Android fan. To say that Microsoft, Apple and Google are are going to shut out new entrants misses the fact that Android is mostly open sourced and ideal for new entrants like Xioami and Amazon to build on.

[fpgeek]

Phones have become more and more like computers over those 6 years (and this trend was obvious before that). Apple isn't a newcomer to the computer market (and their earlier history is serving them well - many of the patents they're using aggressively come from the 90s).

On the other hand, Google is a relative newcomer and it has been an issue for them (so much so that they eventually decided to buy one of the older players for their patents).