File under what just happened here? According to a press release issued by Microsoft yesterday, it has entered into a cross-licensing patent deal with Amazon.

This covers the Kindle as well the Linux-based servers that Amazon uses, and comes back to the Microsoft claim that a number of Linux implementations are infringing upon patents it holds. This is not the first such deal to be brokered by Microsoft, and the amount of money that Amazon is to pay Microsoft in order to continue using Linux has not been disclosed and probably never will be.

Here's what that Microsoft statement had to say on the matter:

"The agreement provides each company with access to the other’s patent portfolio and covers a broad range of products and technology, including coverage for Amazon’s popular e-reading device, Kindle, which employs both open source and Amazon’s proprietary software components, and Amazon’s use of Linux-based servers."

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