蘋果與谷歌專利問題和解 多產品線競爭激烈 關係曾近破裂

Google and Apple have called a truce in a long-running patent dispute, ending a high-profile legal battle between two Silicon Valley titans over smartphone technology.

在漫長的專利糾紛之後，谷歌（Google）與蘋果（Apple）最終達成和解。這場兩大硅谷巨頭在智能手機技術上的訴訟吸引過許多眼球，如今就此告一段落。

"Apple and Google have agreed to dismiss all the current lawsuits that exist directly between the two companies," the two companies said in a joint statement late Friday.

在上週五的聯合聲明中，雙方表示：“蘋果和谷歌同意終止雙方之間現存的一切直接相關的法律案件。”

Google's Motorola Mobility unit started the fight in 2010 by suing Apple for patent infringement. Apple (AAPL) responded by counter suing, ushering in an era in which major technology companies spent huge resources fighting each other in court. Google (GOOG) inherited the lawsuit when it acquired Motorola in 2012 for $12.5 billion. It has since agreed to sell off the unit to Lenovo, the Chinese computer maker, for $2.9 billion while keeping Motorola's patents.

2010年，摩托羅拉移動（Motorola Mobility）率先開戰，起訴蘋果專利侵權行爲。蘋果隨即反訴還以顏色。科技巨頭花費大量資源在法庭上你來我往互相起訴的時代從此拉開序幕。在2012年以125億美元收購摩托羅拉移動之後，谷歌接手了相關訴訟。隨後谷歌同意將該部門以29億美元的價格出售給中國電腦製造商聯想（Lenovo），同時保留摩托羅拉的專利。

The lawsuits and counter suits – nearly two dozen in all globally – highlighted the increasing tensions between Google and Apple, which had been allies at one time. But their growing rivalry in everything from mobile devices to online maps to laptop computers left the relationship in tatters and an army of attorneys busy in court.

在全球各地，谷歌和蘋果的訴訟與反訴訟案件已經有二十餘起，曾爲同盟的這兩家公司之間關係日趨緊張。在移動產品、網絡地圖、筆記本等幾乎所有領域，谷歌和蘋果的競爭都在加劇，這讓他們的關係趨於破裂，雙方的律師忙着在法庭上打官司。

Google, arguing that Apple had infringed on its patents, had tried to get injunctions to force Apple to stop selling the iPhone. Apple argued that parts of Google's Android software took their cue from the iPhone's operating system.

谷歌稱蘋果侵犯了他們的專利，試圖禁止蘋果出售iPhone。蘋果則認爲谷歌的一部分安卓軟件抄襲了iPhone操作系統的創意。

In dropping the suits, the companies may have simply come to the conclusion that it was no longer worth the bother. With Google selling Motorola, neither side had much of an incentive for years of further litigation.

這次兩家公司放棄訴訟，可能是因爲他們意識到再這樣糾纏下去並不划算。隨着谷歌出售摩托羅拉，雙方都沒有意向將已經持續多年的訴訟繼續下去。

In the statement, the two companies said they would work together in some areas of patent reform. Big Silicon Valley companies, despite their rivalries, are largely united in their critique of the patent system and the desire to change it to reduce lawsuits by so-called patent trolls – small companies whose livelihood is largely from pursuing patent infringement claims.

在聲明中，兩家公司表示他們會在專利改革的一些領域進行合作。硅谷巨頭們儘管各爲對手，但對專利系統大體都持批評態度，並願意改進它們，減少“專利流氓”發起的訴訟。專利流氓就是指那些很大程度上依靠專利侵權起訴爲生的小公司。

Apple and Google said they had not agreed to cross-license their patents to each other. If they had, it would have been a sign of unusual cooperation between two rivals. Apple and Google, together, dominate the smartphone market. Apple does so with its iPhone while Google's power lies mostly in its operating system, which it licenses to a number of mobile phone manufacturers.

同時，蘋果和谷歌表示，他們並未同意互相授權專利。否則，這就意味着兩家競爭對手之間建立了非同尋常的合作。目前，蘋果和谷歌共同主導着智能手機市場。蘋果通過iPhone做到了這一點，而谷歌則主要依靠安卓操作系統，許多智能手機制造商都需要獲得其授權。

Apple's agreement to make nice with Google does not extend to Samsung, a Google Android partner. Earlier this month, Apple received a $120 million judgment against Samsung for patent infringement.

蘋果與谷歌的和解協議並不適用於安卓合作伙伴三星（Samsung）。本月早些時候，蘋果起訴三星的專利侵權行爲獲勝，贏得了1.2億美元的賠償。