The patent saga continues with U.S. Circuit Judge Richard A. Posner in Chicago ruling that Motorola and Google must provide Apple with information regarding Android development as well as information about the impending merger. It’s unclear exactly what specific “information” must be provided and while everyone goes ahead and assumes it’s some sort of top secret documentation, I’m betting it’s nothing of the sort and Apple won’t be gaining any trade secrets out of this. It’s all ridiculous and will only end as all of these patent suits have ended, with nothing more than a software update.

Today a German court ruled that most of Motorola’s products infringe on Apple’s slide-to-unlock image patent with the only exception being the slide-the-circle gesture used in the Motorola XOOM. This ruling allows Apple to enforce a permanent injunction against the Motorola products found in violation. Motorola can still appeal the decision therefore Apple would be taking a very big risk enforcing such an injunction at this time. Should the ruling be overturned, Apple would have to reimburse Motorola for any lost sales due to the injunction. Regardless of Apple’s decision, one thing is for sure: Motorola will now have to make changes to their UI.

Google has sent letters out to various standards organizations, including the IEEE, promising to honor MMI’s patent licensing policies after it completes its planned acquisition of the company. This includes honoring MMI’s maximum go-forward per-unit royalty rate of 2.25%. This is the same rate MMI is asking Apple to pay in order to lift the injunction on the iPhone and iPad 3G passed down in Germany. Apple has rejected this offer and is fighting it, claiming it’s unfair and contrary to the principles of FRAND licensing commitments. No matter the outcome of the Apple/Motorola dispute, Google will be honoring it once they take over.

If you happen to care about the ongoing patent wars, then you may want to know about the latest ruling in the Apple vs. Motorola case brought down by the International Trade Commission. The Administrative Law Judge ruled that Motorola Mobility does not violate any of the three Apple patents listed in Apple’s suit. This suit dates back to October 2010, when Apple claimed that various Motorola devices infringed upon certain patents related to touchscreen features, as well as an ability to add components without having to run an installation program or rebooting. While this is an initial ruling, chances of the final ruling being any different are extremely slim.

As the ongoing patent arms race continues, Google has acquired a few extra weapons courtesy of IBM. Just before the end of 2011, Google scooped up another 200+ patents from IBM, bringing the total of IBM patents acquired to just over 2000. Of course not all these patents are mobile related, but there are a few covering VOIP, NFC, and a “computer phone.” This just continues the steps Google has been taking to increase its patent portfolio and readying itself for the inevitable patent troll 2.0 that 2012 will bring.