San Francisco — Software behemoth Microsoft Corp. on Monday announced an agreement to license its mobile software to rival Google Inc., that will allow iPhone and Windows Mobile users synchronize the devices with their Gmail contacts and Google Calendar events, a move that emphasizes the increasing ability of large technology companies to use intellectual property for more than simply developing products for their own customers.
Google Sync constantly updates the calendars and Gmail contacts in iPhones or Windows-based mobile devices to adjust changes users make using computers online, or vice versa.
“Sync uses push technology so any alterations or additions to your calendar or contacts are reflected on your device in minutes,” Google Mobile engineer Bryan Mawhinney wrote in a posting on the California firm’s website. The feature is already available for Research in Motion Ltd.’s BlackBerry.
“One of the strongest parts about switching phones is getting your address book and calendar to your new device,” Google said in the blog. “We are making that process a little easier.”
“Since Sync is a bi-operational service, you can make changes on your phone or in your Google account. Your calendar and contacts are always up-to-date, no matter where you are or what you are doing.”
Google is using Microsoft’s ActiveSync technology in its Google Sync service, which allows users automatically update calendar and contact information on mobile devices. Google, after introducing Sync on Monday, described it “a particularly handy improvement for people who regularly use Google tools.”
Microsoft’s vice president of intellectual property and licensing, Horacio Gutierrez, said in a statement that the Google license is “a great example of Microsoft’s openness to generally license our patents under fair and reasonable terms so long as licensees respect Microsoft intellectual property.”
The software giant has created more than 500 licensing agreements for its intellectual property in the last five years, with many mobile device makers including Apple, Nokia, Palm, Samsung and Sony Ericsson, according to Gutierrez.
Gutierrez described the licensing deal with Google as “a clear acknowledgement of the innovation taking place at Microsoft”.
While the new deal with Google demonstrates Microsoft’s growing ability to capitalize on its patent portfolio, it also highlights pressures on the company to further open up to other tech-industry players, following a series of setbacks at the hands of antitrust regulators.
According to its settlement with the U.S. Justice Department in 2002, Microsoft is required to document its technology in detail, and to offer related licenses to rivals on reasonable terms. In addition, the European Commission has slammed the company with steep fines for failing to adequately offer rivals licenses to its technology.