Facebook Acquires No New Patents in WhatsApp Takeover
February 20, 2014
World Intellectual Property Review
On February 19, Facebook completed a $19 billion purchase of WhatsApp, an instant messaging service. In past acquisitions, Facebook amassed a large patent portfolio. In this instance, WhatsApp does not hold any patents. Finnegan partner Christine E. Lehman, provided commentary to WIPR, and noted that “Despite efforts to improve the backlog at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, it still takes years to obtain patents, so a young company like WhatsApp simply may not have been around long enough to have many issued patents.”