Microsoft revealed it has begun legal action against Samsung, alleging that correspondence with the South Korean handset giant indicates a “fundamental disagreement” with regard to an intellectual property licensing deal.

The US computing giant said that it entered into a cross-licensing deal with Samsung in 2011, which has been “extremely beneficial for both parties”.

But late last year Samsung stopped complying with the agreement, using Microsoft’s acquisition of handset rival Nokia as “an excuse to breach its contract”.

“Curiously, Samsung did not ask the court to decide whether the Nokia acquisition invalidated its contract with Microsoft, likely because it knew its position was meritless,” David Howard, corporate VP and deputy general counsel for Microsoft, wrote.

“Microsoft values and respects our partnership with Samsung and expects it to continue. We are simply asking the Court to settle our disagreement, and we are confident the contract will be enforced,” he continued.

According to specialist website FOSS Patents, the issue appears to be that while Samsung is paying Microsoft on a per-unit basis – and the company has seen its smartphone volumes spiral since 2011 – Microsoft does not need to make any additional payments to Samsung with regard to devices from the former Nokia unit.

In addition to which, the new-look Nokia has retained a number of mobile-related patents, and could look to negotiate with Samsung with regard to a separate deal.

FOSS Patents said that this may come down to whether the agreement between Microsoft and Samsung is structured in such a way that it remains legally enforceable after the Nokia transaction – even if this outcome was not expected at the time it was signed.

Microsoft’s patent licensing business has proved especially lucrative for the company in the wake of the growth of the Android market, as numerous vendors have signed licensing deals.

It has, however, seen relatively little court action, with Motorola being the only tier-one company to have not signed a contract with Microsoft in order to take its chances with the legal process.

As with many of the ongoing legal battles in the smartphone patent space, the Microsoft/Motorola case saw each side making gains and losses, with no decisive blow dealt.