Biography
Michael Frank Martin is head of patents at Verizon Media (formerly AOL and Yahoo) and advises on open source and standards development issues across Verizon.
After studying physics and physical chemistry at UCSD and the University of Chicago, Michael worked as a technical adviser and patent agent at Gardner Carton & Douglas in Chicago (now Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath). On graduating from Stanford Law School, he practiced patent litigation and worked in-house at an early-stage venture capital fund in the San Francisco Bay Area. Michael moved in-house to Yahoo! Inc. in 2013 and has been with Verizon since its acquisition of Yahoo closed in 2017.
In addition to managing the Verizon Media global patent portfolio, since joining Verizon he has been responsible for advising the larger company on legal issues around use of and contribution to open source, along with IP, antitrust, export control, and governance issues arising in standards development and industry consortia.
When he is not solving legal puzzles, Michael is running, swimming or rock climbing around the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, kids, and dog.