Microsoft Demonstrates How Lucrative Patent Licensing Can Be

An interesting addition to my earlier post about the patent licensing business, there’s another data point that demonstrates how profitable it can be. According to a Citi analyst this morning, Microsoft receives $5 from HTC for every phone running the Android operating system, meaning Microsoft has received five times more income from Android than from Windows Phone. Numbers provided by asymco interactive suggest that 30 million shipments of HTC android devices would result in $150 M, compared with $30 M for 2 million Windows Phone licenses (not device shipments) at an estimated $15 ea.