Google has acquired more IBM patents, adding more than 200 to approximately 2,000 patents it had previously bought from IBM.
The move, first reported by blog SEO by the Sea, was confirmed by a Google spokesman who didn't immediately comment on why the company is interested in these particular patents and on how they may benefit Google products and its customers.
The latest set of IBM patents, transferred to Google on 30 December, 2011, includes 222 patents and covers a variety of technologies, including e-mail management, server backup, tuning and recovery, e-commerce, advertising, mobile Web page display, instant messaging, online calendaring and database tuning.
In the past, Google officials have said that acquiring patents helps the company prevent intellectual property (IP) lawsuits. Considering the rash of IP-related lawsuits in the mobile market, it's safe to assume that many patents Google acquires in the mobile space are meant to strengthen its ability to fight lawsuits, according to William Stofega, programme director of mobile device technology and trends at analyst firm IDC.
"Google has had a great run with what they've done so far and it's clear their patent portfolio isn't as rich as those of others, especially in mobile," he said. "If you're going to be a mobile platform player, you need to make sure you have your ducks in a row regarding intellectual property."
A large part of Google's motivation for buying Motorola Mobility is the latter's patent portfolio, which includes more than 24,000 patents. That $12.5 billion deal is due to close early this year, after the companies obtain all necessary approvals.
IDG News Service