Facebook and Yahoo! form new partnership, resolve patent dispute

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Facebook v. Yahoo! has officially come to an end today. The two tech giants have agreed upon a legal truce which will include a patent portfolio cross-license.

Not only did they settle the patent issue, they also have formed a new advertising partnership. Facebook will help bring Yahoo!’s large media event coverage by collaborating on social integration on Yahoo! The fact that Facebook didn’t have to pay anything is seen by observers as a victory for the social network. In the end, it may help Yahoo more than cash in the long run.

If you did not follow this, Yahoo sued Facebook a couple of months before their initial public offering, probably with the idea of adding additional pressure on the social network. Unfortunately for Yahoo, Facebook has the will and the means to stay in the fight. Yahoo’s new CEO (Ross Levinsohn) has reportedly extended an olive branch to Facebook in order to settle this.