The way they go, in a few years only two mobile brands will be sold in Germany. Companies such as Vivo, Realme, OPPO and OnePlus have stopped selling their smartphones in Germany due to patent issues, although the latter pair have already settled their dispute with Nokia.
Now, two more companies join the list. Germany banned Motorola and Lenovo cell phones, which suddenly stopped selling. Will Spain do the same? Nokia once again set foot in the competition?
This time it wasn’t Nokia, Motorola and Lenovo infringed on another company’s patent
All Lenovo and Motorola mobile phones and tablets have disappeared from the German market, as if they were never available in the country. what happened? A patent conflict, although it wasn’t Nokia that filed the suit this time.
It was the company that sued Lenovo and Motorola. Interdigital, an American company It claims that several of its 4G and 5G patents have been infringed. In particular, the conflict will be with the patent of the WWAN (Wireless Area Network) module used by various devices to access the Internet from the cellular network.
Although this is a widely used technology, it is protected by patents like many other innovations in the field. in order to, Anyone who wants to use it must agree With the company that owns the patent, otherwise there will be infringement and then lawsuits.
In the case of Motorola’s owner Lenovo, the German judicial system found them guilty of patent infringement. the reason? You have not made the payment requested by InterDigital to grant you a license to use it. The details? Lenovo says Interdigital will ask for more money. It acknowledges that it is not an equitable entity to exercise its proprietary rights.
Interdigital claims to adhere to FRAND (‘fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory’) principles, but there’s a problem with that: European laws don’t define what can and can’t be FRAND. in order to, The final decision will end up falling on what is shown to the judges..
If we have such a recent history with Nokia and BBK Electronics subsidiaries, it is expected that the German judicial system will determine the guilt of Lenovo. Germany is chosen by companies A perfect country for this kind of needsBecause the Germans are very strict on FRAND principles.
Lenovo has indicated that it will appeal because the Munich court finds the terms offensive. However, and when all is said and done, Lenovo cannot sell Lenovo or Motorola mobile phones or tablets in Germany. Additionally, Lenovo laptops are sold only while supplies last.
Will we see the same thing in Spain? Should Lenovo go?
Now, we’ll answer the question you’re surely asking yourself after opening this article. The fact is, we doubt that Lenovo and Motorola will stop selling their devices in the Spanish state. The reason is related to reality The decision was made by the German judicial system.Not in the EU court or something similar. Therefore, it is something that does not affect Spanish.
In addition, we have the precedent of OnePlus and OPPO, who have not stopped selling their devices in Spain despite the ban in Germany. As long as there is no interest at the level of the European Economic Area or directly in Spain; No need to worry.
Indeed, Lenovo itself has already confirmed that the Spanish market will not be affected. Furthermore, Spain’s representative took the opportunity to highlight his displeasure with the German measure, stating that instead of making Interdigital innovations “both accessible and affordable”, it “violates the legal obligations to grant licenses under FRAND conditions”.
