Patent litigation might be a thing of the past, as Samsung announced today that it signed a patent cross-license agreement with Cisco for the next ten years. The news comes on the heels of other landmark patent deals that have been concluded by major organizations over the last month, starting with a ten-year licensing deal between Samsung and Google. Last week, Twitter and IBM signed a deal to end their patent fight, and Google signed a cross-license agreement with Cisco.
Samsung’s deal with Cisco will give both organizations access to one another’s current patent portfolios. In addition, any patents filed over the next ten years will also be shared by both organizations. The agreement also sees both organizations collaborating on future products and services.
Dan Lang, Cisco's Vice President of Intellectual Property, mentioned that innovation is stifled in today’s overly-litigious environment, and that by cross-licensing patents, both Samsung and Cisco can focus on advancing innovation.
Dr. Seungho Ahn, the Head of Samsung Electronics Intellectual Property Center, was similarly buoyed by the deal. “We look forward to working with Cisco. We expect this agreement to result in mutual growth and, ultimately, for the benefit of both companies’ customers across the world.”
