Apple Joins Google in $500 Million-Plus Bid for Kodak Patents

Apple and Google have joined forces to offer more than $500 million to buy Eastman Kodak’s patents out of bankruptcy, said two people with knowledge of the situation.

The two companies, competing for dominance of the smartphone market, have partnered after leading two separate consortia this summer to buy Kodak’s 1,100 imaging patents, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the process is private. Unlikely partnerships are typical in patent sales because they allow competitors to neutralize potential infringement litigation. The Apple-led group pursuing Kodak’s patents included Microsoft and Intellectual Ventures Management as of this summer, the people said, while Google’s consortium included patent aggregation firm RPX Corp. and Asian manufacturers of Google’s Android phones.