Networking equipment manufacturer Cisco has announced that it's entered into a "long-term patent cross-licensing agreement" with Google covering "a broad range of products and technologies." Aside from the obvious benefits involved in each company having a license to the other's patents, the deal is intended to reduce the risk of future lawsuits by keeping IP out of the hands of patent trolls. In today's news release Google Deputy General Counsel for Patents Allen Lo is quoted as saying "Our agreement with Cisco will reduce the potential for litigation, letting us focus instead on building great new products."

The news comes hot on the heels of a similar agreement between Google and key Android partner Samsung. Google also held onto Motorola's patent portfolio following its agreement to sell of the smartphone maker to Chinese firm Lenovo.

Source: MarketWired