Microsoft has won a breach-of-contract trial against rival Motorola, with the jury awarding the Redmond software giant just over $14.5 million in damages. About $11 million of that is for violating its contract obligations, and $3 million is to offset Microsoft's legal expenses.
The jury found that by trying to license its standard-essential patents for astronomical sums, Motorola violated the promises it made to the groups that controlled those standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
The result of Microsoft getting some payment in this case is not surprising, since it's a follow-up to a November trial in the same court that Microsoft essentially won. In November, US District Judge James Robart set what he saw as an appropriate rate for licensing Motorola's standards-based patents—about $1.8 million, far closer to Microsoft's suggested rate than Motorola's suggestion that it should be paid as much as $4 billion.
Essentially, Motorola argued that because Microsoft started the fight by suing for patent infringement, Moto's obligations to license its patents on a "reasonable and non-discriminatory" basis ended, and it should be allowed to demand high payments as a negotiating tactic. Judge Robart disagreed, setting a far lower payment. He then allowed a jury to rule on whether Motorola had breached its obligations.
Regarding the jury verdict, made public late yesterday, Microsoft stated: "The jury's verdict is the latest in a growing list of decisions by regulators and courts telling Google to stop abusing patents."
A Motorola spokesman told Reuters: "We're disappointed in this outcome but look forward to an appeal of the new legal issues raised in this case."
Microsoft has been insisting that any company using Android must pay for its patents. Most Android phones now have such licensing, and Google-owned Motorola is the last large holdout according to Microsoft.
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