Microsoft says its settlement with InterTrust Technologies will pave the way for further development of its online-media strategies. The protection and sale of intellectual property, like music and video, is increasingly important to the world's biggest software maker, with digital rights management emerging as a gatekeeper for online music and video downloads.
Microsoft sees a solid DRM policy as crucial to offering a channel for content creators and intellectual-property holders to sell digital products safely online. The deal with InterTrust allows Microsoft to continue in its current direction without having to develop its own DRM tools, which would have meant losing its place in line in the increasingly competitive online-media business.
Removes Uncertainty
Microsoft will pay a one-time fee to InterTrust of US$440 million. InterTrust had been seeking more than $1 billion. The new agreement gives Microsoft a license for InterTrust's patented technologies, and it lets InterTrust design and publish DRM technologies under Microsoft patents. "This is an important agreement," said David Kaefer, Microsoft's director of business development, intellectual property and licensing. "[It] removes uncertainty for the industry and will ultimately speed the development and deployment of comprehensive DRM solutions for customers and partners," he told NewsFactor.
News source: NewsFactor
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