Google Files Patent Claim Against Microsoft, Nokia

The Associated Press: Patent wars are nothing new in the mobile industry, but Google has filed a rather unusual new claim against Microsoft and Nokia. In a filing with the European Commission, Google accused the two companies of working together to feed a patent troll, with the goal of driving up licensing fees for the rest of the industry. In September, Microsoft and Nokia sold 2,000 patents to MOSAID Technologies Inc., a company that earns its income from royalties and licensing fees rather than from actually creating tech products.

“Nokia and Microsoft are colluding to raise the costs of mobile devices for consumers, creating patent trolls that side-step promises both companies have made,” Google said in a statement. “They should be held accountable, and we hope our complaint spurs others to look into these practices.”

Microsoft responded by saying that Google “is complaining about antitrust in the smartphone industry when it controls more than 95 percent of mobile search and advertising. This seems like a desperate tactic on their part.”