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

The Fall of Corporate Media Controlled by Oligarchs Who Boost (or Are Compelled to Boost) Reckless Lies About the Poor While Normalising Rich People's Crimes
No wonder they have layoffs
Rumour of IBM 'Bloodbath' in Clown Computing
Performance Improvement Plans mean one step ahead or before layoffs
(Live-)Stream of Richard Stallman's Latest Talk in Europe (No Longer Live)
The latest public talk and Live-Streamed schedule were announced early on for the public to know about
Richard Stallman is Already in India, Giving Talks About Microsoft Chaffbots and More
he's already giving some talks in India
Drunk on Chatbots, LinuxSecurity.com Spews Out More LLM Slop About "Wine"
They just keep googlebombing "Linux" and "Security" using slop
Gemini Links 24/01/2025: The "Hey Hi" Hype Continues Fading, Tesla/X/Twitter/SpaceX Associate With Nazism
Links for the day
Robbery at the European Patent Office (EPO), Office Staff as 'Prisoners'
publication from the Central Staff Committee, dated yesterday
Techrights in 0.036 Seconds
Combining Gemini and HTTP/S, yesterday we served an impressive number of requests
 
Red Hat is Required to Promote Microsoft's Proprietary Stuff and Even Produce Puff Pieces (Mindless Fluff) About It
Notice the aspect of bribed "media" or "news" or "press coverage" (pay-to-say)
The Limits of Freedom
This is generally not a new problem
IBM Layoffs (or Replacement With Low-Cost Labourers) Far Greater Than Reported by IBM
they serve to confirm what we've long said not only in relation to IBM but also Microsoft
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, January 24, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, January 24, 2025
Dr. Andy Farnell: "Richard Stallman Chose to Stand For the Rights of People to Use Technology as They Wish. He Chose Freedom Instead of Riches."
Keeping busy in public transport
Gemini Links 24/01/2025: Drehgriffel, Computer Science and Capitalism
Links for the day
Microsoft Lost a Ton of Market Share in Web Servers Last Month (the Last Month of 2024) and Massive Losses Continue in 2025, Shows New Report
Microsoft down sharply
Microsoft (Nick Vidal) and Co-opting "Open Future" With Microsoft-led "Open Source AI Definition" (Openwashing LLM Slop and GPL Violations)
Microsoft is tainting all sorts of groups via the OSI
BetaNews Run by Plagiarism Bots That Googlebomb (for SEO) "Linux"
Google rewards and thus encourages plagiarism
Microsoft, IBM, and Front Groups That Advance Racism for Profit
IBM has profited a lot from racism and it still does
FOSDEM and 'No Nazis'
the issue isn't wealth but principles
IBM Titles Considered Worthless and Many IBM 'Fellows' Are Vanishing (Also: IBM Staff Inside Linux Attacks the Rights of Computer Users for Recognition or Rewards Like "Distinguished Engineer")
James Bottomley is still "a Distinguished Engineer at IBM"
Gemini Links 24/01/2025: "Social" Control Media is Unsatisfying; An Old Call for a Gemini Without TLS
Links for the day
[Meme] Levels of Outrage
Apparently it's hip for criminals to leverage "the law" to silence their exposers
Links 24/01/2025: Earthquake, Landslide, and Official Implicated in Airplane With Landing Gear Issues (Boeing Plane) "Found Dead"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, January 23, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, January 23, 2025
CDN Giant: Microsoft Bing and Skype Collapsed Since the LLM Hype, Same as Other Metrics Show
No wonder Microsoft managers suffer anxiety and there are several waves of layoffs even on the same month
Gemini Links 23/01/2025: Experience With Outer Wilds and Gifting a Site
Links for the day
Slopwatch: Fake 'Articles' About Linux by Brian Fagioli and by Brittany Day in BetaNews and linuxsecurity.com (LLM Slop Sites That Are Online Leeches or SEO Operations Working Against Free Software Journalism)
Two new examples for today
Links 23/01/2025: More Overt Constitutional Violations and "TikTok Executive Order" (White Flag to CCP)
Links for the day
Status of New Year's Resolutions
3 weeks later
"The AI Bubble is Popping", Now It's Bailout Time
The hype will quietly fizzle, just like "blockchains"
[Meme] When the Government of the Netherlands Participates in Your Crimes It Lacks an Incentive to Hold You Accountable for Crimes
the EPO's corrupt management boasted (on television) that it would ignore rulings against it even if issued by the highest Dutch court
Links 23/01/2025: US Constitution Already Besieged (Impeachable Offences Pile Up), Arrest Warrant for Assad
Links for the day
Microsoft's Head of Business Development Quits (Days After Two Large Waves of Mass Layoffs)
We recently learned that people close to the management are very stressed this month
[Meme] Reliable Sources
Sooner or later LLMs swallow up their own lies (that they generated), which means that over time those things will only deteriorate further, exacerbating an already-large misinformation pandemic
BetaNews Plagiarising Work in the Linux Space
The originals won't even be listed
Gemini Links 23/01/2025: US Politics and DevOps Career
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, January 22, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, January 22, 2025