Nokia Sued in U.S. over a Technology Patent
HELSINKI (Reuters)—New Zealand-based company Michael S Sutton Ltd. has filed a complaint against Nokia in the United States for infringing a data packaging technology patent and is seeking damages, court documents showed.
The complaint—which says the world’s top cellphone maker is using in its messaging applications technology patented by Sutton—was filed in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas on April 30.
Nokia said it would actively defend its rights in the case.
“This case was previously filed against Nokia and then voluntarily dismissed by the plaintiff. We will analyze the details of the new case which was filed on 30 April, 2007 and actively defend the rights of Nokia,” a spokeswoman said.
Legal rows in the wireless industry have increased as the complexity of technologies in phones grows.
Nokia is currently in a major dispute with U.S. Qualcomm on a cross-licensing agreement between the two firms.
UPDATE:
Nokia CEO says Qualcomm can’t set industry rules
HELSINKI (Reuters) - The world’s top handset maker Nokia Oyj said on Thursday its talks with Qualcomm over technology patents were continuing, but the U.S. chip maker shouldn’t be allowed to dictate rules to the industry.
“Talks are ongoing, the situation is open, and I have to say, the agreement cannot be reached before both parties have agreed,” Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said at the annual shareholders’ meeting.
“It’s completely clear that we cannot give one company, in this case Qualcomm, a chance to dictate rules for the whole industry. The issue is not Qualcomm versus Nokia, it’s more about Qualcomm versus the rest of the industry,” he said.
A major cross-licensing agreement over technology patents between Qualcomm and Nokia expired partly last month, and their increasingly bitter battle is worrying investors and the industry on both sides of the Atlantic.
The legal dispute between the two centers on Nokia’s use of Qualcomm patents for high-speed wireless technology, but it also has a bearing on Qualcomm’s chips business, which according to Nokia uses many Nokia-patented technologies.
The world’s top wireless network maker Ericsson said last month it hopes to see a quick solution in the technology license dispute before it hurts the whole wireless industry.
Ericsson is part of a group of six companies including Nokia that have complained to the European Commission about how much Qualcomm charges in royalties for use of its technologies.
Shares in Nokia were 0.8 percent lower in Helsinki, in line with weaker DJ Stoxx European technology index, while Qualcomm shares were 0.5 percent weaker.
Also: Ovi Nokia