Ericsson Signs Multi-Year Patent Deal with Samsung, Ending Dispute

Ericsson and Samsung have signed a multi-year global patent licenses, ending their licensing dispute.

A Page Turned for Ericsson and Samsung

The deal includes patents related to all cellular technologies, including 5G. The dispute hit the Swedish company's quarterly revenue, and will come as a relief to the Swedish telecom vendor.

The Swedish telecom vendor said that this will end all complaints they filed before the United States International Trade Commission. Also, this agreement will resolve a number of ongoing lawsuits in many countries.

The companies have not divulged any details of the agreement, citing them to be “confidential”. However, the cross-license agreement covers sales of network infrastructure and handsets from January 1, 2021.

Christina Petersson, CIPO, Ericsson said that the vendor was “delighted to sign a mutually beneficial agreement with Samsung".

She further added, "this important deal confirms the value of our patent portfolio and further illustrates Ericsson’s commitment to FRAND principles”.

The Swedish company further added that several factors will continue to affect IPR licensing revenues. These factors include expired patent license agreements pending renewal, geopolitical impact on the handset market, technology shift from 4G to 5G, and possible currency effects going forward.

With this, the company expect 2-2.5 billion Swedish crowns in second-quarter licensing revenues.

Both the parties said they will also collaborate on technology projects. They will do so to promote open standardization in the mobile industry while creating solutions for consumers and enterprises.