Conversant welcomes latest Huawei/ZTE SEP ruling
Conversant Wireless Holdings has claimed victory in its latest patent battle with Chinese telecoms companies Huawei and ZTE.
In a decision issued yesterday, January 8 the English High Court ruled that two out of three Conversant patents-in-suit were partially valid, and standard-essential.
This entitles Conversant to recover a fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) licensing royalties for the patents.
Conversant has accused Huawei and ZTE of selling smartphone handsets that infringe its standard-essential patents (SEPs).
The patents relate to key functions of modern smartphones, including voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) and high-speed data transfers.
Huawei and ZTE had argued that the patents were invalid altogether, and not essential to the relevant telecommunications standards.
Reacting to the judgment, Conversant CEO Boris Teksler said the court had confirmed the “strength of the Conversant Wireless portfolio”.
Priority and subsequent filings
The ruling was not a total victory for Conversant, as the court ruled that one of the three patents was invalid altogether.
This is because a key claim of the patent was broader than the disclosure of the priority filing.
It follows another judgment of the court last July, which held that another Conversant patent was unenforceable because it was broader than the original patent filing. Conversant has appealed that judgment.
Peter Gray, partner at Mathys & Squire, said yesterday’s ruling was a “salient reminder of the dangers of broadening independent claims between priority and subsequent filings”.
Nonetheless, Gray said the latest ruling could be seen as a “qualified victory” for Conversant in the context of its wider patent dispute with Huawei and ZTE.
FRAND cases
Robert Lundie Smith, partner at EIP Legal which represented Conversant, told WIPR: “This judgment represents a major victory in a long-standing dispute over payment for the use of Conversant’s portfolio of standard-essential telecoms patents.”
“It’s a significant step forward for Conversant in its wider dispute with Huawei and ZTE and paves the way to the High Court now considering the FRAND licence fees due to Conversant by both Huawei and ZTE,” Smith added.
The UK Supreme Court is set to rule this year on a separate major FRAND licensing jurisdiction dispute between Conversant and Huawei/ZTE.
Central to that case is whether UK courts are entitled to set global FRAND rates for standard-essential patents.
Pending the outcome of that dispute, a FRAND trial is set to kick off at the High Court in April this year.
Conversant has asked the court to declare that it offered Huawei and ZTE a licence to its SEPs on FRAND terms, or alternatively set the terms of a FRAND licence for the patents.
Did you enjoy reading this story? Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories like this sent straight to your inbox.
Today's top stories:
Rapper urges court to ignore 'friends of Katy Perry' brief
