- Huawei informed that it negotiated with Verizon for a significant period of time
- It also stated that the two parties were unable to reach an agreement on license terms
Huawei has filed patent infringement lawsuits against Verizon in the United States District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Texas. The company is seeking compensation for Verizon’s use of patented technology that is protected by 12 of Huawei’s US patents.
“Verizon’s products and services have benefited from patented technology that Huawei developed over many years of research and development,” said Dr Song Liuping, Huawei’s chief legal officer.
Huawei negotiated with Verizon for a significant period of time
Before filing the lawsuits in Texas, Huawei negotiated with Verizon for a significant period of time, during which the company provided a detailed list of patents and factual evidence of Verizon’s use of Huawei patents. Huawi also informed that the two parties were unable to reach an agreement on license terms.
“We invest heavily in R&D because we want to provide our customers with the best possible telecommunications solutions. We share these innovations with the broader industry through license agreements,” continued Dr Song.
He added, “For years now we have successfully negotiated patent license agreements with many companies. Unfortunately, when no agreement can be reached, we have no choice but to seek a legal remedy. This is the common practice in the industry. Huawei is simply asking that Verizon respect Huawei’s investment in research and development by either paying for the use of our patents, or refraining from using them in its products and services.”
Since 2015, Huawei has received more than US$1.4 billion dollars in patent license fees. The company informed that to date, it has also paid over US$6 billion dollars for the legitimate use of patented technologies developed by industry peers. Over 80 per cent of these license fees have gone to companies in the United States.
