Although Microsoft says it evaluates each phone and tablet individually, General Counsel Brad Smith said Wednesday that it believes every hardware maker that ships an Android device has a patent issue that needs to be addressed. “So far we have not seen a single Android device that does not infringe on our patents,” Smith said. Microsoft’s solution is fairly simple: it is seeking a per-unit royalty for each Android product that ships. The company reached a key milestone on Wednesday as it announced that it had signed a deal with Samsung under which the Korean firm will pay Microsoft a royalty for every Android phone and tablet it sells. “I think there is a good chance we will look back at today and say this ... Continue reading →

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If it works as advertised, the Kindle Fire will give the iPad its first serious competition. Which means consumers are going to have make a choice: Do they want to pick Amazon’s cloud, or Apple’s? Because both companies are now offering something very similar, but not very compatible: Lightweight media consumption devices*, where the consumers will be expected to store the bulk of their media on someone else’s server. Apple is moving quickly toward this model, with its new iTunes in the Cloud service, which will let you access music, TV shows and eventually movies you’ve purchased on any Apple machine with a Web connection. And the Kindle Fire will be there from the get-go – the device will only offer eight gigs of storage, ... Continue reading →