(Source: Daimler)
The District Court of Dü sseldorf, Germany, said that it would suspend the trial of the lawsuit between Nokia and Daimler, after the two companies went to court because of disputes over patent fees for navigation systems, automotive communications and technologies used in self-driving cars.
The focus of this long-term debate is the standard technology used by 4G mobile network to support the function of connected cars, and whether Nokia licenses other enterprises to use its technology (FRAND) on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms.
The dispute between the two companies has attracted the attention of the European Union, and the European Commission has stepped in and proposed to establish a mechanism to determine whether certain patents are necessary to establish technical standards and reduce the "friction" in the use of patents.
Interpreting the ruling of165438+1October 26th, the court in Dü sseldorf stated that Nokia believed that the company had the right to decide which part of the supply chain to issue patent licenses. Daimler retorted that according to the EU single market rules, Nokia is obliged to provide unrestricted authorization for all patent use related to standard patents.
In its ruling, the Dü sseldorf court held that Nokia had the right to apply for an injunction against Daimler on the grounds of patent infringement. However, the court also raised the question whether Nokia was suspected of abusing its dominant market position. The court in Dü sseldorf will suspend the proceedings until a series of related issues submitted to the European Court of Justice are clarified.
After the case was handed over to the European Court of Justice, Daimler's free use of Nokia patents was actually frozen. For Nokia, this is a blow. Patent licensing fees can create 654.38+04 billion euros (about 654.38+07 billion US dollars) of income for this Finnish enterprise every year. The two companies can appeal against the judgment of165438+1October 26th.
Nokia said in a statement: "In the past 14 years, Daimler has been using Nokia's technology and has been looking for various ways to avoid payment. In view of the court's judgment today, we will now consider our own choices. "
Daimler welcomed the decision of the Dü sseldorf court, saying that it would make it possible to clarify the issue of standard basic patents "basically and throughout Europe".
The case being tried in Dü sseldorf court is one of many cases between Nokia and Daimler in German courts, which is also a typical feature of patent litigation, because all parties want to seek favorable precedents.
This article comes from car home, the author of the car manufacturer, and does not represent car home's position.