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Judge rules Xbox 360 doesn't infringe Motorola patent

The Xbox 360 is clear for now, but the decision could be overturned and an import ban imposed.

Joe Svetlik Reporter
Joe has been writing about consumer tech for nearly seven years now, but his liking for all things shiny goes back to the Gameboy he received aged eight (and that he still plays on at family gatherings, much to the annoyance of his parents). His pride and joy is an Infocus projector, whose 80-inch picture elevates movie nights to a whole new level.
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Joe Svetlik
2 min read

It's taken some time, but a judge has finally ruled that the Xbox 360 isn't guilty of infringing Motorola's patents, Bloomberg reports.

The lawsuit started way back in 2010. In April of this year, the console was found to infringe four of Motorola's patents, but the US International Trade Commission said it had to take a second look, and soon decided otherwise.

The case originally included five patents, with the last one related to a way of pairing the console with accessories. Judge David Shaw has ruled this doesn't infringe Motorola's patent, but the case isn't over yet. Google -- which owns Motorola -- will have the Commission review the findings, and Judge Shaw's ruling will be subjected to a six-person examination. The Big G will also try and impose an import ban on the console.

Despite not being out of the woods yet, Microsoft welcomed the ruling. "We are pleased with the Administrative Law Judge's finding that Microsoft did not violate Motorola's patent and are confident that this determination will be affirmed by the Commission," David Howard, Microsoft's corporate vice president and deputy general counsel, said in a statement.

Google was less chuffed. "We are disappointed with today's determination and look forward to the full Commission's review," Google spokesperson Matt Kallman said in a statement.

Motorola originally filed the complaint in response to Microsoft demanding royalties on phones using Google's Android mobile operating system. Microsoft had set up a licensing programme for companies making Android devices, and successfully stopped Motorola phones from using ActiveSync, which lets you synchronise schedules across your desktop and mobile.

Google wasn't taking it lying down, so snapped up Motorola and its vast patent library, and hit back at Microsoft. (It also bought Motorola to bolster itself against the vast might of Samsung, in case it became too big for its own good.)

Should an import ban be imposed on the Xbox 360? Or is that crazy talk? Let me know in the comments, or on our Facebook page.