Microsoft, Samsung Sign Patent Licensing Agreement
Linked by Thom Holwerda on Wed 28th Sep 2011 15:36 UTC
PDAs, Cellphones, Wireless This is the biggest one yet. Microsoft's professional extortion campaign - the third side of the same triangle it shares with Apple and Oracle - has finally hit Samsung. The two companies have signed a patent licensing agreement concerning Samsung's use of Android, in which a rumoured fee of $15 (!) per device will flow from Seoul to Redmond. Not entirely coincidentally, that's about the price of a Windows Phone 7 license.
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RE[5]: .
by ilovebeer on Sat 1st Oct 2011 09:32 UTC in reply to "RE[4]: ."
ilovebeer
Member since:
2011-08-08

When I have to pay an extra $15 for products, I'm given pause. When I have to pay an extra $15 for products, just to fill the pockets of third parties who contributed nothing of note to those products to justify the extra price, I'm given more pause. When I know that $15 is going to an organisation with a long history of being arse holes, I'm given yet more pause.


If you really don't get it, I invite you to shop at Icaria's grocery store. Our prices aren't great (drug habits are expensive, after all) but, well, what do you care where your money goes?


First, how did $1-2 magically become $15? Second, if you're so worried about how people spend their money, that was formerly your money, then you better stop paying taxes, putting gas in your car (which I assume you have), using electricity, and all of the other billion things that put "your" money in the hands of people who misuse it. And btw, companies don't have to justify their prices.. That responsibility is yours -- you justify prices to yourself by purchasing products & services. Everything for sale is worth what people are willing to pay. You, not a company, determines an items value to yourself.

I'll quote myself and bold the parts you should pay extra attention to.

"Maybe I'm old-fashioned or crazy but all I'm concerned with is 1) does the phone suit my needs, and 2) am I comfortable with the price. I couldn't care less if $1-2 of my no-longer-mine dollars goes to Microsoft or hookers & booze, and you shouldn't care either. There are plenty of worthy causes to spend your time on -- this isn't one of them, seriously."

Reply Parent Score: 1