Microsoft and Google have ended five years of litigation, agreeing to drop about 20 lawsuits in the US and Germany. This brings more than a long-running patents feud to an end – it is also a sign that the licensing models and secretive deals which have governed mobile technology are doomed. The two giants’ mutual need to shape the development of mobile web platforms outweighed their patent spats, and the most important aspect of their settlement is an agreement to cooperate on new, royalty-free standards – notably the proposed alternative to the HEVC video codec – and to help drive new licensing frameworks, especially in Europe. Both objectives are superficially noble but also highly disruptive, and see Google seeking to…