Microsoft announced today the addition of Acer to its long list of Android OEMs who have agreed to preinstall Microsoft apps on tablets and handsets. The agreement is part of Microsoft’s patent licensing strategy designed to increase the availability of Microsoft’s apps while collecting royalties.
The announcement was made by Nick Psyhogeos, president of Microsoft Technology Licensing, which “was formed in 2014 to acquire, manage and license Microsoft’s patent portfolio.”
A simultaneous post was written by Nick Parker, Vice President of the OEM Division, summarizing Microsoft’s overall progress in preloading its apps and services on Android devices. Parker said the total count has reached 74 participating hardware partners in 25 countries.
These partners offer or will soon offer Android devices pre-installed with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, OneDrive and Skype. Office and Microsoft services are available on a wide variety of Android devices today, such as the LG G Pad 2, Samsung Galaxy S6, Sony Xperia Z4 and many other tablets and phones offered by our partners. Specific offerings may vary by device.
Our strategic agreements with these partners, in which IP alignment is an important feature, demonstrate how Microsoft is leveraging the scale of the hardware ecosystem, and working with partners in new ways to deliver rich experiences to our customers. This is a cornerstone of our broad services strategy, to bring an array of Microsoft services to every person on every device.
Microsoft has been aggressive in its quest to sign licensing arrangements with OEMs. Last year the tech giant settled outstanding disputes with Samsung after previously accusing the Korean company of not paying an estimated $3.21 per device. Android's steward, Google, also settled outstanding patent issues with Microsoft last year.
In addition to Microsoft's strategy of collecting royalties while getting its apps preloaded onto Android, the Redmond giant has made the invasion of Android a top priority in other ways. The company has been working hard at getting Cortana and its other apps integrated into Cyanogen OS, as well as building its own Android launchers and lock screens.
Source: Microsoft
_small.jpg)
34 Comments - Add comment