Facebook to Purchase 650 Patents from Microsoft in $550 Million Deal

  • In a deal worth $550 million, Microsoft has agreed to sell 650 patents and patent applications to Facebook.
  • “The Haüs of Zuckerberg will stump up the cash in exchange for various social networking patents that were registered by AOL and sold to Redmond for $1 billion a fortnight ago,” according to Engadget.
  • Microsoft will hang on to the remaining 275 patents in its portfolio “and cross-license those that it’s sold on, but not the 300 patents that AOL licensed but kept hold of,” adds the post.
  • Engadget explains that with this deal, “the social network will likely utilize the portfolio to better defend itself from litigation like the lawsuit brought by Yahoo back in March.”
  • “Today’s agreement with Microsoft represents an important acquisition for Facebook,” said Ted Ullyot, general counsel, Facebook. “This is another significant step in our ongoing process of building an intellectual property portfolio to protect Facebook’s interests over the long term.”

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