Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has signed a patent licensing agreement with Toyota Motor Corp (ADR) (NYSE:TM).
Under the patent licensing agreement, Microsoft will license its intellectual property (IP) for connected cars to Toyota.
Tokuhisa Nomura, executive general manager at Toyota, said that “automotive makers should partner with technology leaders like Microsoft to create the best, most immersive connected car experiences.”
Erich Andersen, corporate vice president and chief IP counsel of Microsoft’s Intellectual Property Group, said that Microsoft has been developing “innovative technologies that are powering today’s connected car experiences” for many years.
“When you look across telematics, infotainment, safety and other systems in today’s connected cars, you find Microsoft technologies and innovation,” Andersen added.
Since Microsoft launched its IP licensing program in December 2003, the company has entered into more than 1,200 licensing agreements.
“The automotive industry is undergoing a digital transformation. The technology in automobiles that’s connected to the internet and capable of receiving services from the cloud is ushering in a new wave of innovation. In fact, by some estimates, over the next three years, more than 90 percent of all cars will be connected. From amazing fuel savings, to predictive maintenance and safety features, to self-driving cars, we’re at a critical inflection point that will change how we drive,” Andersen said in a blog.
Microsoft Azure IP Advantage
Last month, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) launched Azure IP Advantage, a new program to help Azure customers reduce their IP risk in the cloud.
The software giant said that it received a positive response to the program and for all three elements: expanded indemnification; the patent pick; and the springing license benefit.
In a blog last month, Andersen said that developers see Azure IP Advantage as a valued feature of Microsoft Azure.
“The basic offer of the patent pick is straightforward; Microsoft will make available a list of 10,000 patents that qualified Microsoft Azure customers can choose from to help them defend against patent lawsuits brought by operating companies against their cloud service offerings that run on Azure,” Andersen said.
