STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Sweden’s Ericsson has filed one other set of patent infringement lawsuits towards Apple within the newest salvo between the 2 firms over royalty cost to be used of 5G wi-fi patents in iPhones.
Both firms have already sued one another within the United States as negotiations failed over the renewal of a seven-year licensing contract for telecom patents first struck in 2015.
Ericsson sued first in October claiming that Apple was attempting to improperly minimize down the royalty charges whereas the iPhone maker filed a lawsuit in December accusing the Swedish firm of utilizing “strong-arm ways” to resume patents.
“Since the prior settlement has expired, and we now have been unable to achieve settlement on the phrases and scope of a brand new license, Apple is now utilizing our expertise and not using a license,” an Ericsson spokesman mentioned.
Apple didn’t instantly reply to a request for a remark.
Patent lawsuits are fairly frequent amongst expertise firms as each greenback saved may quantity to important quantities over the period of the settlement as firms equivalent to Ericsson fees between $2.5 to $5 for each 5G handset.
The Swedish firm invests about $5 billion yearly in analysis, has a portfolio of greater than 57,000 patents, and royalties from its patent portfolio account for roughly a 3rd of its working revenue.
Last yr Ericsson settled patent lawsuits with Samsung after a number of months of courtroom battles that quickly hit its quarterly earnings. Pending dues are often cleared after a settlement is reached.
(Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Stockholm, Editing by Louise Heavens)
