On July 6, Facebook and Yahoo announced a settlement of the patent lawsuits, including a cross-license of patents, no exchange of money, and an expansion of the existing ad and content partnership. It appears the resignations of Yahoo's prior CEO and general counsel, who had advised to file the patent lawsuit right before Facebook's IPO, helped open the door for settlement. Although the settlement was not entirely predictable, the vague news barely moved Facebook's and Yahoo's shares. Here are some of the many articles on the settlement:
Facebook and Yahoo Settle Patent Litigation - Wall Street Journal
Yahoo and Facebook Settle Patent Lawsuits - New York Times (blog)
Yahoo, Facebook have settled patent fight - USA Today
Exclusive: Yahoo and Facebook Strike Patent Peace Deal, Significantly Expanding Ad and Content Partnership - All Things Digital
Yahoo, Facebook strike patent truce, ad alliance - Boston.com
Facebook, Yahoo end patent war with vague collaboration agreement - San Francisco Chronicle (blog)
Developments in patent dispute between Facebook and Yahoo - Washington Post
Facebook, Yahoo settle patent feud, announce new ad partnership - San Jose Mercury News
Yahoo, Facebook drop patent suits, team up on ads - San Francisco Chronicle
Facebook, Yahoo Settle Patent Fight With Advertising Deal - PC Magazine
If you are in a tech company, I suggest reading my related posts:
Yahoo! Threatens to Sue Facebook for Patent Infringement - February 28, 2012
Yahoo! Sues Facebook for Patent Infringement! - March 13, 2012
The Yahoo Patent Offensive - Precipitating Factors? - March 17, 2012
Yahoo v. Facebook Patent Lawsuit - The Pundits Arrive! - March 21, 2012
Facebook Buys 750 IBM Patents - Call to Arms - March 23, 2012
Facebook Countersues Yahoo for Patent infringement - April 3, 2012
Facebook Countersues Yahoo for Patent Infringement - Links to Articles - April 4, 2012
Yahoo Expands Patent Fight with Facebook - April 27, 2012
Yahoo v. FaceBook Patent Lawsuit - Links to Articles - April 28, 2012
AOL Giving Shareholders $1B Cash From Patent Sale - May 17, 2012
Copyright © 2012 Robert Moll. All rights reserved.
