Smartphone patent disputes are far from uncommon — Apple and Samsung were infamously engaged in a seven-year legal battle before settling in 2018 — and soon there may well be another.
Huawei wants Apple and Samsung to pay it 5G patent fees
Bloombergreports that smartphone manufacturer and 5G equipment supplier Huawei is planning to start charging Apple and Samsung a “reasonable” fee for access to its database of 5G patents.
Chief Legal Officer Song Liuping has promised that the company will charge lower rates than rivals Qualcomm, Nokia, and Ericsson. In fact, Huawei is capping royalties at $2.50 per smartphone.
The aim is to generate between $1.2 billion and $1.3 billion from patent fees and licenses issued from 2019 to 2021. That will be reinvested into 5G research in the hope of maintaining Huawei’s position as a leading 5G network equipment provider.
Because Huawei is asking for a relatively low amount of money compared to others, Apple and Samsung should be able to quietly reach agreements with Huawei without the issue leading to a lengthy legal battle.
However, the US government’s position on the matter is unclear.
Huawei argues that the ongoing trade sanctions, which have stopped it from doing business with countless American companies, shouldn’t stop it from collecting royalties because its patents are publicly available. Whether the Biden administration agrees will remain to be seen.
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