Bonum Certa Men Certa

Google's CEO Publicly Complains About Microsoft's Legal Attacks on Android/Linux

Larry Page in the European Parliament



Summary: Amid Google's revelations about Microsoft funding for anti-Google lobbyists and trolls (who primarily use patent lawsuits and disinformation), the CEO too is complaining

MICROSOFT'S attacks on Linux have become more complicated and difficult to track. Some months ago Google validated our claims by saying that Apple was helping Microsoft fight against Android. A few days ago Google's Matt Cutts showed that Microsoft Florian was in fact funded by Microsoft and in principle he is far from alone in it. There are many more examples, such as Edelman (the company too, by proxy). Then there are Microsoft patent trolls, such as Intellectual Ventures. It is getting hard not to see why Microsoft is detested, but at the same time it gets complicated to see the whole picture because Microsoft attacks from many directions at the same time. It's not about competition but about subversion, litigation, harassment, defamation, etc. That's Microsoft in a nutshell.



The software patents fans are cheering for Microsoft's sponsorship of Microsoft Florian while others roll their eyes. "#FRAND licensing means a private tax on standards. #FFII prefers #open standards," writes the FFII.

Following Microsoft's Quanta deal that puts a Microsoft tax on Kindle Fire (Amazon already pays Microsoft for the older Kindle), this racketeering strategy is still a subject of discussion and Google's CEO responds by explaining the impact on customers:

Google: Microsoft is Competing in Mobile by Harassing Customers



Google is continuing to grow its business even as the global economic recovery appears to be slowing down. Part of Google's growth and future optimism comes from the success of its Android mobile operating system and new efforts like Google+.

For the third quarter of 2011, Google reported revenues of $9.72 billion which is a 33 percent year-over-year gain. Google's own sites generated 69 percent of total revenues. Net Income was also on the rise, coming in at $2.73 billion up from $2.17 billion in 2010.

One of the key drivers for Google now and moving forward is its mobile strategy which is anchored by their Android operating system. During the company's earnings call, Google CEO Larry Page stressed that his company was very excited about Android and the continued growth of the Android partner ecosystem.

Page also addressed the issue of how Microsoft is going after Android vendors. Multiple Android vendors including HTC and Samsung have signed agreements with Microsoft for patent issues related to Android. Both HTC and Samsung also work with Microsoft for Windows Phones.

"Rather than seeing, for example, Microsoft compete in the marketplace with their own smartphones, they've really continued resorting to legal measures to hassle their own customers, right? So it seems kind of odd," Page said. "And we haven't seen the details of those total agreements, and I suspect that our partners are making good deals for themselves there."

Page added that Google has seen no signs that the attacks on Android have been successful. Google is also in the process of bolstering it own mobile patent portfolio with the pending acquisition of Motorola. Google announced its intention to acquire Motorola for $12.5 billion in August.



Google did the right thing by mentioning customers. This is not just an attack on Google.

In a sane industry, the constitution would take effect and actually defend the customers' interests. But since the SCOTUS is deep in the mud with corporate interests covering its eyes [1, 2], we expect no such intervention to occur. In fact, there is this new video about how SCOTUS serves as a constitutional gateway (which is clearly shut). From C-SPAN:

Justices Breyer and Scalia testified on the role of judges in the American republic and democratic systems within the U.S. Question topics included the politicization of the judicial confirmation process...


The SCOTUS is not about justice and the courts are not about law. The constitution and various important acts like the RICO Act are mere relish when it's corporations (rich people) -- not people -- who run the nation. Did the October 15th protests make a change everyone can believe in? Is the two-party system listening to its people yet? Or just to its campaign's funding sources (plutocrats)? We shall see. A response will need to be issued to this petition.

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

Daniel Pocock as Independent Candidate, Now in The London Standard
"Daniel Pocock is an independent candidate."
Andy Burnham as National Leader Would be Excellent for Techrights
Burnham has envisioned a British "centre of power" (or gravity) that moves northwards, isn't concentrated in the southeast anymore
In Defence of Courts' Privacy Policies
If you want friends, go offline. Meet real people and share real experiences.
Why I Quit Academic Career (or Academia) Nearly 15 Years Ago
I am told by people who stayed that it has only gotten worse
EPO "Cocaine Communication Manager" - Part XV - Nazi-Like Thinking at the European Patent Office (EPO) Not a Thing of the Past
antisemitism inside the EPO
Daniel Pocock Running for Office Again, Clacton-on-Sea By-election
By-election - code name "Pocock-on-Sea"
 
In Free Software, Nobody Gets Fired
Way to own one's code and project
PIP-Styled Mass Layoffs Allegedly Coming to Microsoft by 12 August 2026
Microsoft has been doing "silent layoffs" (PIPs and more) for quite some time
Daniel Pocock's Candidacy (Election of Member of Parliament) Mentioned in BBC and Over a Dozen News Sites Since Yesterday
Funnily enough, albeit not surprisingly, the same people who attack Pocock also attack us
Links 18/07/2026: Spotify Uses Slop Song Descriptions, "San Francisco Demands Removal of Nudify Apps"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, July 17, 2026
IRC logs for Friday, July 17, 2026
Gemini Links 18/07/2026: A Manifesto by The Dissident, Shokz Headphones, and Gemini Tinylog Reader (GTL)
Links for the day
IBM Already Tentatively Down for Next Week (Monday) After Its Worst-Ever Week
What a week for IBM!
Links 17/07/2026: Protests Erupt Throughout Ukraine and Anthropic Caught Secretly Spying on Users
Links for the day
Gemini Links 17/07/2026: "Silence Doesn't Mean Abandoned", Revisiting PalmOS in 2026
Links for the day
Farage Out, Daniel Pocock in?
Can Pocock beat his previous voting record?
Layoffs at Microsoft Are Massive, Go Under the Radar for the Most Part
Microsoft is in a really bad shape
One Heck of a Week for IBM, the 'Grandpa' of 'High-Tech', International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) Under Investigation by Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC
If IBM gets busted or might be busted, will the CEO jump, get pushed, or be arrested?
“Why Open Source Misses the Point of Free Software”
As Dr. Richard Stallman once put it
GNU/Linux Grows at the Expense of Microsoft Windows in Croatia, Now Close to 8%
Croatia has been mentioned a lot lately in relation to EPO "lobbying" (vote-rigging)
27-Year IBM Veteran on IBM: "Worse than the Titanic and Perhaps Just Like Madoff, Enron, etc."
several comments we saw today envisioned the CEO of IBM in an orange suit (in US prison)
ServiceNow/ServiceLine and Slop at the EPO is Becoming a Health Risk to Staff
PD44 has historically been the oppressor at the EPO
IBM Can Burn Pensioners to Appease Wall Street and Protect the Billionaire CEO With His Humongous Bonuses
Its stock it set to open 2.82% in the red
IBM SHAREHOLDER INVESTIGATION: Potential Securities Claims Involving International Business Machines (IBM)
there's a risk of criminal action against executives
Tux Machines Moving Onwards and Upwards
"...tasks expand to fill the time available"
The Register MS is Publishing Spam for Gartner Group to Spread Hype About "AI", Mentioned 30 Times in the Paid (Fake) Article
One sure thing is, the so-called 'tech media' is profoundly compromised by American corporations
"Market Share" of GNU/Linux Nearly Trebled in Cambodia This Month
GNU/Linux is still measured at 8% by statCounter
GitHub is Dying (Traffic Down Despite Bots and Slop), Microsoft Will Eventually Cull it - Just Like XBox - to Limit the Losses
Do not stay on GitHub (Microsoft) under the false assumption that it is "free hosting" or will always be around
Teaser: Daniel Pocock is About to Go Mainstream Again
Stay tuned, Pocock has something in store
Microsoft Has Just Been Sued Over Layoffs
If the rumours are true, there is yet another wave of layoffs at Microsoft
Richard Stallman Always Cautioned, Upfront, That His Political Views Were Wholly Separate From His Scientific Work or GNU
Notice that he already spoke a lot about politics
Links 17/07/2026: Microsoft is Cutting OneDrive Coverage, Larry Ellison Sued by Paramount Investor
Links for the day
Nichirei and Asahi Beer Need to Take Cyberattacks as Hint of Opportunity to Move to Free Software
Windows TCO
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, July 16, 2026
IRC logs for Thursday, July 16, 2026
Gemini Links 17/07/2026: Sunlight in the Clouds, Techno-Therapy, and Sloppifying Original Text
Links for the day
Links 16/07/2026: Slop Recognised as a Waste of Energy, Hong Kong Cracking Down on Dissent/Opposition Some More
Links for the day
GNU/Linux Approaching 5% "Market Share" in Oceania, Almost Trebling in 12 Months
It is difficult to ignore the gains made by GNU/Linux this month
Microsoft Whistleblowers Explain How Brutal the Latest Cull is (Layoffs in Seconds-Long Calls, Mass Elimination of Whole Studios and High-Level Officials)
we see anonymous leakers or whistleblowers in the media today
Gemini Links 16/07/2026: esp32-gemserv, Slop-Contaminated Free Software, and Moving Systems
Links for the day
Last Summer Microsoft Mass Layoffs Came in Two Large Waves, Rumours Say Next Week Another Large Wave is Coming
If many more Microsoft layoffs are formally admitted next week we will not be surprised
Tomorrow is Another Strike Day at Europe's Second-Largest Institution, the Media is Still Deliberately Ignoring It
Fridays are now recommended “anchor days" for EPO strikes
Public Interest News Foundation Shows News Drought or News Deserts in the United Kingdom
Public Interest News Foundation shows that we should be deeply concerned
Illusions of Choice
Choices can be differently bad or equally bad
Windows Down to 10% in India
Windows is a "burning platform"
One Year Has Passed
Our aim is to repair an injured system wherein "abuse of process" can be turned into a weapon, leveraged even by foreigners who are funded by affluent third parties
Techrights is Annoying People Who Work for (and Serve) People Who Annoy (and Abuse) Society
Working against us (instead of with us) has historically been a bad strategy
No Skinnerboxes, No Slop, No False Idols or Corporate Prophets
Torvalds does not understand the everyday struggles of tech workers and tech users because he is a millionaire
IBM's Next Stop: $199 (Market Cap Already Under 2.5 Times IBM's Debt)
Don't rush to call us "sensationalist" over it
Links 16/07/2026: Solar Greenwashing by Energy-Wasting GAFAM and Growing Concerns About Harm by Social Control Media
Links for the day
Gemini Links 16/07/2026: Photography, Agility, and "Today I have Truly Become a Linux User."
Links for the day
Rebellion Brewing at Microsoft
As always, we welcome Microsoft whistleblowers
Technology Against Human Nature
Losing a sense of what it means to be alive
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, July 15, 2026
IRC logs for Wednesday, July 15, 2026