Nokia sets €1.5bn licensing target; Samsung takes damages hit in US SEP case; New ETSI DG elected; Time to talk about hold-out; and much more
Welcome to the latest edition of the Sisvel Insights weekly round-up, aggregating news stories, analyses and data points affecting the SEP world that have caught our eye over the past seven days
After successfully closing licensing renewal deals with all the world's major mobile devices manufacturers, Nokia is looking to new areas to increase its run rate to €1.5 billion over the coming years. So said CEO Pekka Lundmark after the release of the company's Q1 2024 financials, which showed a big jump in royalty income for the first three months of this year.
Elsewhere, a damages retrial in an Eastern District of Texas wireless SEP case saw an award against Samsung more than doubled to $142 million; while the incumbent director-general of ETSI lost his position to former Ericsson vice-president Jan Ellsberger.
Look out, too, for a couple of Sisvel-originated opinion pieces: one on the dangers of hold-out and the other on the dishonesty involved in equating patent trolls with NPEs.
Please note that inclusion of a piece in the list below does not signify agreement with what is stated in the linked article, just that we believe it is of interest and worth pointing out.
Legal
A damages retrial in the SEP wireless case between G+ Communications and Samsung has seen the jury more than double its original award to the plaintiff to $142 million. Samsung owes $142 mln in wireless patent case, jury says | Reuters
German router market leader AVM has agreed to take a licence from Huawei to use the Chinese company’s WiFi 6 SEPs, bringing long-running litigation between the pair to an end. AVM takes license to Huawei’s WiFi 6 standard-essential patents: German WiFi router market leader settles litigation – ip fray
Dolby has launched a UPC action against Turkish home appliance maker Arçelik AŞ, alleging infringement of an SEP reading on the Opus audio codec. Dolby sues Turkish TV maker in UPC alleging audio SEP infringement - IAM (iam-media.com) [Paywall]
US video technology company DivX has won a preliminary injunction against Hisense/Toshiba in Brazil in a dispute concerning an HEVC-related SEP. DivX wins preliminary injunction in Brazil against Hisense/Toshiba over HEVC-related patent – ip fray
Market
With Nokia Technologies having completed its mobile device licensing renewal cycle, Nokia CEO Pekka Lundmark says the company will now focus on growth areas such as IoT, multimedia and consumer electronics, “with the next goal to increase our annual licensing net sales run-rate to EUR 1.4 to 1.5 billion in the mid-term.” Nokia Technologies top line soars on the back of 5G renewals - IAM (iam-media.com) [Paywall]
iPhone sales dropped by 10% in the first quarter of 2024, as Apple surrendered the top spot in the global smartphone market to Samsung. Chinese companies Xiaomi, Transsion and Oppo rounded out the top five. Apple (AAPL) iPhone Shipments Fall 10% as Android Smartphones Rise - Bloomberg
Policy
Former Ericsson VP Jan Ellsberger has been elected the new director-general of ETSI. In a very tight third round vote, he defeated current incumbent Luis Jorge Romero, who has held the post since 2011. Swede Ellsberger elected new head of standards body ETSI | Euronews
The Irish government has postponed a referendum on whether the country should join the Unified Patent Court system that was due to take place on 7th June. No new date has been proposed. Government defers date for referendum on a Unified Patent Court - DETE (enterprise.gov.ie)
The USPTO has announced proposals to codify many existing PTAB review policies and practices. However, the package is a slimmed down version of what had originally been mooted. USPTO Publishes Long-Awaited Proposed Rule on PTAB Changes (ipwatchdog.com)
Opinion and analysis
Courts around the world have called out bad faith negotiation delay strategies by unwilling licensees in FRAND-related disputes. It is important they do so because of the multiple harms such behaviour causes. Policy makers should take note. Sisvel | We need to talk about hold-out
Those who equate the terms NPE and patent troll are engaging in deliberate distortion. It is a strategy that worked successfully in the US, now it is being deployed in Europe too. It’s something everyone who believes in good faith debate should reject. Sisvel | Patent trolls are not a European problem
