Microsoft, Pioneer Corp. Ink Patent Cross-Licensing Agreement - Update 9/16/2008 7:45 PM ET (RTTNews) - Tuesday, Microsoft (MSFT: News ) said it has signed a patent cross-licensing agreement with Japanese electronic company Pioneer Corp. (PNCOF.PK) to further develop each company's product lines. The agreement is expected to expand technological innovation to enhance the overall customer experience. The cross-licensing agreement would cover a broad range of consumer products, including Pioneer's auto navigation products and televisions, as well as Microsoft's software products and allows greater mutual access to each partner's respective patent portfolio. The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, though the parties indicated that Microsoft is being compensated by Pioneer. Microsoft noted it has entered into similar patent cross- licensing agreements relevant to auto navigation in the past 12 months with industry leaders Kenwood Corp. and Alpine Electronics Inc. Earlier in the day, Microsoft said it closed the acquisition of large-volume, high-performance data warehouse appliances provider DATAllegro Inc. MSFT ended Tuesday's regular trading down 3.09% or $0.83 at $25.99 on the Nasdaq.

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