Taiwanese chipmaker MediaTek and its subsidiaries HFI Innovation and MTK Wireless have filed a lawsuit against Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. in the High Court of Justice in England and Wales.
The lawsuit, which remains classified, was filed a few days after MediaTek announced on the Taiwan Stock Exchange that it was the subject of a patent infringement lawsuit by Huawei in China.
Details on the specific technologies involved in both lawsuits remain undisclosed. However, sources familiar with the matter have confirmed to Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) that both cases involve patents related to cellular technology.
According to Chinese media reports, the dispute stems from failed negotiations on a component-level license agreement that collapsed after three years of negotiations.
Huawei is reportedly taking a different approach to licensing than the standard approach to licensing mobile standard essential patents (SEPs).
Traditionally, SEP licensing has focused on end products such as smartphones. However, it seems that Huawei is pursuing a component-level licensing strategy, focusing directly on chipsets.
The company’s rationale behind this shift remains unclear. But one anonymous lawyer told IAM that “given that both sides are 5G chip makers, there may be a business strategic reason behind this art of war.”
Meanwhile, Chinese media have speculated that Huawei’s move to component-level licensing could be a strategy to shift pressure from major handset makers like itself and Samsung to chipmakers like MediaTek and Qualcomm for royalties. This could potentially allow Huawei to offer more competitive prices for its devices.
An anonymous patent expert commented that the dispute may also be “a signal to Qualcomm that it is willing to collect royalties, even if it does not do so immediately.” US sanctions are currently limiting Qualcomm’s ability to sell advanced chips to Huawei, but the situation could change.
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