Patent Licensing Broadened

In what appears to be a first step toward monetizing its intellectual property portfolio, Microsoft has revealed licensing terms for patents related to ClearType text-display technology and to the File Allocation Table (FAT), which maps files to clusters on disks formatted by Microsoft OSs and is commonly used by makers of portable storage media. The move suggests that Microsoft will increasingly turn to its portfolio of more than 4,000 patents as a revenue source. However, if the company is too aggressive about pursuing intellectual property licensing, it might drive potential licensees to consider alternate technologies more seriously.

Role of Patents Changing

Patents have always been an important aspect of Microsoft’s business. The company encourages employees to apply for patents by making them a factor in employee evaluations, particularly in the Microsoft Research division and in product development teams, and as a result, the company has more than 4,000 active U.S. patents and another 5,400 pending.