Microsoft has a lot of sources of revenue, but perhaps the easiest source of income for the Redmond company is the patent fees it collects from Android manufacturers. Samsung and Microsoft have gone to court over patent royalty issues in recent years, but Samsung was beyond its differences with Microsoft and secured a deal to have the latter's apps pre-installed on its smartphones in exchange for settling all its patent lawsuits out of court.
Now, it seems Microsoft is doing Samsung another favor in exchange for the placement of its services on the Korean manufacturer's smartphones. According to a report by The Korea Times, Microsoft has offered to cut down on the patent fees it charges Samsung each year. 2013 saw Samsung paying about 1 trillion won in 2013, or around $2.7 for each phone or tablet; the report doesn't say what the new charges will be, but any discount will no doubt be beneficial for Samsung considering its attempts to get back to profitability.
Microsoft is also said to be talking to LG regarding the same, but hasn't offered an official statement on the matter.
