Microsoft today announced patent licensing agreements with two small vendors in the business of selling cheap Android tablets. Aluratek sells $150 and $220 Android tablets on its website , while Android tablets from another vendor called Coby Electronics  can be purchased for only $80 . Microsoft is paid royalties on over  70 percent of Android smartphones  in the US, striking license agreements with nearly every vendor making any money off Android, and filing patent infringement lawsuits against those who don’t pay up . Microsoft said it will receive royalties from both Aluratek and Coby under the licensing agreements, which cover e-readers, tablets, or potentially other devices running either the Android or Chrome platform. Since launching its “IP licensing program” in 2003, Microsoft has signed more than 1,100 licensing agreements, it says.

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Two vendors pay Microsoft for the right to sell cheap Android tablets