Netflix’s exclusive Arrested Development production won’t air until later this May, so while eager fans are waiting for the show’s return, they’ll be able to catch up on shows like Adventure Time, Ben 10, the Green Lantern animated series, Robot Chicken, Johnny Bravo, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and TNT’s Dallas, which will join Netflix in January 2014, while the rest will come on March 30.

This licensing agreement comes just one week after Netflix announced an earlier deal, which focused primarily on live-action shows, and it appears that Netflix and Warner Bros. are becoming increasingly friendly with one another, which is both good for the two companies involved, as well as the consumers.

With the ever-increasing back catalog of TV shows, Netflix is becoming a dominant figure in the streaming media realm, hosting not only TV shows, but a respectable collection of movies as well. And every time the service makes another deal with a content provider, it becomes more and more tempting to cut the cable cord.

[via Deadline]

This information on how much HTC is likely paying Apple comes from Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu, a man with vested interests in getting analysis right around these companies getting his own information from “conversations with industry sources.” As it stands, should HTC continue to sell 30-35 million Android smartphones annually, they’ll be paying $180-$280 million annually to Apple. HTC’s total per phone payed to Microsoft and Apple will soon be between $11-$13 USD per phone – tiny or giant, however you choose to see it.

HTC’s license fees here have more of an impact on the way Apple does business than it does on how it does business simply because Apple hasn’t recently been entering into agreements like this – quite the opposite. Instead, Apple has been entering into litigation with groups such as Samsung – grabbing millions from them after arduous legal processes. Prolonged as those fights inevitably are, it may be that Apple has found a better way to do business with settlements such as these.

Have a peek at the timeline below to see other recent Apple legal matters – and see if you can tell why Apple may just want to be out of the courtroom as much as possible into the future. HTC too may be finding itself in either a really terrible place at the moment (not likely) or a great place – with both Microsoft and Apple having enough confidence in their future to make long-lasting agreements, be they negative or not.

[via Business Insider]

Microsoft said in a statement today that exFAT allows flash memory-based devices to handle files that are five times larger than the older FAT system could facilitate, and that RIM has licensed the system “for certain BlackBerry devices.” Neither company clarified which devices those are, but it seems safe to assume that the exFAT system will be present in the first BlackBerry 10 devices when they eventually arrive. Beyond that, we’ll have to wait for more details.

RIM actually enjoyed a rise in stock price after the announcement hit, but the company’s stock price continued fluctuating throughout the day, losing here and gaining there. Still, RIM finished the regular trading day up 2.28%, posting a $7.41 stock price at the closing bell. After hours trading see a bit of an increase over that closing amount as well, with RIM’s stock currently sitting at $7.45. It seems that shareholders view this as a step in the right direction for RIM, but will it be enough?

RIM will definitely need more than Microsoft’s exFAT system to get users excited about BlackBerry 10, but this is a good addition. Speaking of the beleaguered operating system, it’s still scheduled to launch early next year, after a number of delays that pushed it back from previous release dates. RIM has a lot riding on the hope that the launch of BlackBerry 10 will pull the company out of this rut, so here’s hoping that the OS is a beast when it finally arrives.

This case between Motorola and Apple echoes the recently-ended patent suit between Apple and Samsung. Apple came out on top in that case, and things are looking pretty good for the iPhone maker in Germany now as well. Standard-essential patents must be licensed under fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms (FRAND), so now the two companies are trying to work out those terms. If Motorola and Apple can’t agree on a suitable FRAND rate, then the royalty Apple will be paying Motorola will be decided by the German court.

Naturally, this licensing deal only applies to Apple devices sold in Germany, so elsewhere in the world, the legal battle rages on. Motorola might have a difficult time moving forward with its case, as FOSS Patents points out that now Motorola will have to rely on non-standard-essential patents to try to get what it wants out of Apple. In that case, the worst Google and Motorola will probably be able to do is pump up the royalty rate Apple would have to pay.

It’s worth pointing out that essential patents don’t always stand up well in court. Samsung pointed to several of its essential patents in the trial against Apple, but that strategy didn’t work out as the jury found that Apple wasn’t infringing on them. Will Motorola and Google get what they want out of this case? That’s still hard to call, but with this licensing deal in Germany, it might make it difficult for Motorola to continue on. Stay tuned.

AllThingsD reports that Apple patent licensing director Boris Teksler referenced the October 2010 presentation during his testimony yesterday. The presentation shows that Apple was asking for $30 on each Samsung smartphone sold (dubbed “advanced mobile computing device” in the presentation), and $40 for each Samsung tablet. If Samsung had agreed, Apple was projecting that it could have made $250 million from the licensing deal in 2010, a figure which can hardly be considered chump change.

Apple was willing to give Samsung discounts on royalties too, seeing as how it considered Samsung a “strategic supplier.” For instance, Samsung could have enjoyed a 20% discount if it chose to cross-license its own patent portfolio to Apple. Phones using an Apple-licensed OS were good for a 40% discount, and phones that didn’t use proprietary features – Apple references the Samsung Blackjack II in its presentation, which has a physical QWERTY keyboard – would have qualified for another 20% off.

Samsung, obviously, wanted nothing to do with this licensing deal, and Teksler said in his testimony that none other than Steve Jobs and Tim Cook were driven to confront Samsung executives about the similarities between the Galaxy S and the iPhone. Hopefully Samsung made the right choice in turning down that licensing deal, because if it loses this case, it could end up owing Apple a lot more than it would have been paying in royalties. Samsung is set to begin calling its own witnesses to the stand on Monday, so keep an ear to SlashGear for more information on this high-profile trial.

The agreement signed today is a multi-year deal, and at this point, it’s unclear which exact patents Google has licensed from Rovi’s portfolio. What is clear is the fact that Rovi holds thousands of patents related to the world of digital entertainment in one way or another (the company itself counts “approximately 5,100″), so it wouldn’t surprise us to hear that Google didn’t have any choice but to sign this licensing agreement. Still, if it helps make Google Fiber’s TV service better, then we imagine paying licensing fees will be a minor detail to the Internet giant.

Google will be offering this new fiber TV service alongside its fiber Internet service, but it’s probably going to take some time for all of this to get off the ground. As of last week’s announcement, only Kansas City, MO and Kansas City, KS are confirmed to be getting the service, and neighborhoods – “fiberhoods” as Google calls them – will need to compete for the compnay’s attention. Google will be giving neighborhoods that post strong pre-registration numbers priority when it comes to installing service, and the initial roll out is set to last well into 2013.

Despite Google Fiber’s inevitable slow start, it’s good to see Google getting licensing agreements locked down so fast. Seeing as how this is a pretty big undertaking, this probably won’t be the last we hear of Google licensing technology from other companies. Keep an ear to SlashGear for more information, and be sure to check out our story timeline below for more information on Google Fiber!

This agreement is part of a IP licensing program Microsoft has had in play since December 2003, with many signings taking place over the past year. This program gained quite a bit of attention over the past year due to the many groups which had to sign with Microsoft in a way that made it so the Windows-toting company made more cash from Android-based devices than they did with their own Windows Phone project. Of course that’s all inconsequential when it comes down to this particular agreement – but Android is, of course, Linux-based, and the devices Amdocs ends up serving in the end do often end up being Android as well.

Take that with a grain of salt and for a moment, all you patent-hating lovers out there, have a listen to what Horacio Gutierrez, corporate vice president and deputy general counsel, Intellectual Property Group at Microsoft, has to say.

“This agreement with Amdocs adds to the more than 1,100 patent license agreements Microsoft has entered into over the last decade. Microsoft’s licensing program ensures respect for its world-class intellectual property portfolio while at the same time making available to others the result of its multi-billion dollar annual investment in research and development.” – Gutierrez

Sound alright to you? Have a peek at some other recent cases Microsoft has had on its side over the past few months in our timeline below.

[via Microsoft]

That amounts to a lot of pocket change for Microsoft, and since Aluratek and Coby would likely find themselves in court if they didn’t join Microsoft’s licensing list, we’re guessing that they won’t complain too much about having to pay Microsoft a fee.

Aluratek is mainly known for its Android tablets and e-readers, with Coby also producing Android tablets as well as netbooks and TVs. Microsoft says that the Android OS and Chrome OS infringe on some of its secretly-held patents, which makes sending an Android or Chrome-based device to market without paying Microsoft some money first a chance that a lot of companies apparently aren’t willing to take.

Which company will be the next to start paying Microsoft a royalty? Time will surely tell, as we’re positive that we haven’t heard the last of Microsoft’s now-infamous licensing list.

[via ZDNet]

This is an extension of what Microsoft calls their “commitment to licensing intellectual property” and will not be the last time the company finds its way into the companies around the world that are running Android devices. Microsoft in this case has now licensed four of the top five Taiwanese ODMs and certainly plans on continuing down this path until they’ve got them all. According to Horacio Gutierrez, corporate vice president and deputy general counsel, Intellectual Property Group at Microsoft:

“We are pleased to have reached this agreement with Pegatron and proud of the continued success of our Android licensing program in resolving IP issues surrounding Android and Chrome devices in the marketplace” – Gutierrez

Microsoft has a website dedicated to IP Licensing which you can check out if you feel you might someday be working with them or for them in some sense or another. Microsoft will indeed be receiving royalties from Pegatron under this newest agreement though final details have not been released.

[via Microsoft]

Companies needing music for commercials or for other uses can license one of more than 1 million tracks that are available via GreenLight Music. The music licensing company has an online marketplace for shopping, and the tracks can be used for trade shows, websites, and other things. The tracks are separated into various categories aiming to help make it easier to pick your song.

Categories include things like cocky, breakups, driving, and romance. Presumably, the goal is to help a person searching for music to match the track to the tone of the presentation or commercial. Once the user has picked the track, the shopper chooses how long they need to use it, and they can then submit a bid for licensing.

[via Geekwire]