In a seeming response to Ericsson’s earlier lawsuit in October that accused Apple of bad faith negotiations, Apple has now filed a lawsuit against Ericsson, accusing it of unfair and strong-arm tactics in cellular patent licensing negotiations. The two lawsuits point to the growing friction that had characterized the licensing negotiations so far. Apple’s lawsuit was filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.
The Apple lawsuit alleges that Ericsson had breached its obligation to license patents that are critical to the telecommunications industry standards at fair rates. The suit is requesting the court to dismiss Ericsson’s earlier lawsuit and also to seal the complaint because it contains sensitive information relating to business operations, according to the patent platform, FOSS Patents. The Apple-Ericsson tango on patent licensing has been a long-drawn battle since 2015. The Ericsson lawsuit came on the back of negotiations to renew a 5G patent licensing agreement that is critical for sustaining the current industry standards.
The current scenario bears a close semblance to the 2015 issues when both companies also filed separate lawsuits. Ericsson, at that time, sought a ban on the iPhone in the United States, but a seeming amicable agreement was reached between the two companies in December 2015. The 2015 licensing agreement is silent on 5G technology, hence the need for another agreement. A long-drawn battle between both firms will be bad for the market, hence it is expected that, as was done in 2015, an amicable agreement will be reached between both tech giants.
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