Lodsys went after several iOS app developers last week, for supposedly utilizing their patented in-app payment technology without permission, and had to face threat from Apple Inc. Apple gave an official statement claiming that it has all the licensed rights for the technology it has extended to its developers.
Image via Wikipedia Hence, when Lodsys feared a legal confrontation with Apple Inc., it deviated from its goal and has now sinisterly lodged similar complaints against the Android app developers. A group of Mac users identified in a public forum thread that an Android developer has also mentioned that he was contacted by Lodsys over the same issue. A user with a screen name “Markusn82” wrote in the forum: “We recently implemented in-app purchases for our Android application and several weeks later we received a letter from Lodsys, claiming that we infringed on their patents.” The post further also makes an inquiry asking fellow Android app developers, if anyone has also received such notification or have fallen victim to this incident. Furthermore, the more important inquiry was made asking whether or not shall they expect Google to step in and do something to help its developers, like Apple had done.
Google initialized its feature of integrating the in-app payment method for Android platform almost two months back, and innumerable developers have used this technology since it was released. Many analysts are suspecting that Google will be relatively less concerned in protecting its developers compared to Apple. Simply citing the reason that Google, being an open platform, has a less hands-on approach with Android if compared with the control of Apple with its iOS system.
Lodsys is cleverly only pulling the helpless app developers into legal complications rather than aiming to sue the respective platforms who can easily give a rough fight. Predictably the app developers will be very reluctant and somewhat financially unstable to cope up with a legal battle. However, it should very well stay cautious, that if it exploits any Android app developer too much, Google might even decide to step in as well. After all Google has the exact same licensed technology regarding the in-app technology as Apple. This has also created further agitation among Android app developers as they claim that if Google can easily get rid of Lodsys, than it shall do it already.
Regardless of the decisions by Google, it is certainly visible that Lodsys is straight forwardly exploiting the app developers of both platform and does not has the potential to actually fight for its patent with Apple or Google.
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