Google loses bid for 6000 Patents from Nortel

July 26, 2011
Intellectual Property News and Interesting Facts

Google Senior Vice President Kent Walker opened up about the company’s loss in the Nortel patent auction, calling for patent reform in the U.S.

He characterized patents as government-granted monopolies that block innovation.

Kent Walker said that Google was interested in a collection of 6000 patents from the bankrupt telecommunications company Nortel.

Many of Google‘s competitors have larger patent portfolios given their longer histories, but Google ultimately lost out to Apple, Microsoft, Research in Motion and Sony.

Shortly after the auction’s results were announced, Kent Walker described the outcome as disappointing for anyone who believes that open innovation benefits users and promotes creativity and competition.

Kent Walker shared his thoughts on the U.S. patent system saying that the current patent situation in the technology industry “looks like plates of spaghetti” and has become a mess.

Kent Walker also said that a patent isn’t innovation, it’s the right to block someone else from innovating.

Apple paid a $2.6 billion share in the Nortel patent acquisition.