RE:RE:RE:Big deal / will Apple buy Wilan ?I agree that buying Wilan would, in principle, not be in Apple's playbook. That said, they'll do it if they believe that the downside in NOT doing it is ugly enough. It won't do much to scare patent holders away if Apple gets repeatedly tarred and feathered by the courts.
They will rationally look at the upside and downside of each option--both the financial upside/downside and, crucially, the image upside/downside.
As for Wilan's partnership arrangements, I would imagine they could be flipped to someone who would use them.