Nokia and Google: Nokia and Google Locking Horns Over Web Video Technology

Nokia and Google: Companies in the tech space are always trying to one-up each other. They are always trying to like for any little advantage. This is why both Nokia Corporation (NYSE:ADR) and Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) are locking horns over web video technology.

Google is one of the hedge fund industry’s most popular stock picks, and it’s always important to pay attention to the smart money (see just why here).

According to a report by The BBC, “Google wants its video coding program, called VP8, to be a core part of the WebM project that is making web-centred video production tools.”

While this sounds simple enough, it is anything but that. Instead, Nokia is on the other side of the battle stating that it “owns key patents that define parts of VP8.” With this in mind, the company has filed an objection to the search engine giant’s plan.

It is easy to think that the two companies will be able to work something out, but this does not appear to be the case at the present time. Instead, it appears that things are just beginning to heat up with Nokia Corporation (NYSE:ADR) sending a submission to the Internet Engineering Task Force explaining its position.

You can read the submission in its entirety here.

Here is some more information, from The BBC, pertaining to Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s involvement in the WebM project:

“Google has proposed its VP8 codec, a program that codes and decodes video, be a core part of WebM.”

“The engineers working on WebM hope their technology will eventually become part of the HTML standards that define the way the web works.”

While Google has yet to comment on the battle, Nokia has not be quite as quiet. A company spokesperson shared the following with the popular Foss Patents blog:

“Nokia believes that open and collaborative efforts for standardization are in the best interests of consumers, innovators and the industry as a whole. We are now witnessing one company attempting to force the adoption of its proprietary technology, which offers no advantages over existing, widely deployed standards such as H.264 and infringes Nokia’s intellectual property. As a result, we have taken the unusual step of declaring to the Internet Engineering Task Force that we are not prepared to license any Nokia patents which may be needed to implement its RFC6386 specification for VP8, or for derivative codecs.”

As we found out last week, you don’t want to anger anybody at Nokia, especially CEO Stephen Elop.

What do you think about this struggle between Nokia Corporation (NYSE:ADR) and Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)? Who is right and who is wrong? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Check back here for more updates on Nokia and Google.

DISCLOSURE: I have no positions in any stock mentioned.

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