Kodak, Nokia in in patent cross-license agreement

Eastman Kodak and top mobile handset maker Nokia have entered into a patent cross-licensing agreement that will allow each company access to the other's intellectual property portfolio.

The license agreement, provides for Kodak to receive royalties from Nokia, Kodak said ina statement, without disclosing specific financial terms of the deal.

While Nokia already has an arrangement with camera lens maker Carl Zeiss, Kodak has a 10-year global product and  cross licensing agreement with Nokia's US rival, Motorola, which uses a 5-megapixel Kodak lens in Motozine ZN5, and also features 'Kodak imaging' and 'Kodak perfect touch' technologies to enhance photos with brighter colours and sharper details.

Kodak has adapted its imaging technology for mobile devices, which it says was developed in association with handset manufacturers and service providers to deliver an outstanding mobile imaging experience.

Nokia smartphones incorporate some of Kodak's technologies and the Finland-base handset maker could be aiming to equip its handsets with better photgraphic quality, perhaps on par the picture quality of Kodak products.

''We are pleased to have reached a mutually beneficial arrangement that advances the interests of Kodak and Nokia and validates the strength of Kodak's intellectual property portfolio,'' said Laura G. Quatela, Chief Intellectual Property Officer, and Vice President, Eastman Kodak Company. ''We look forward to continued collaboration with Nokia.''

Wags are having a field day speculating whether Nokia handsets will become more cameras or whether Kodak cameras will become mobile handsets.