The two end the long-running row over how much Apple pays Ericsson for 5G tech patents
Warring parties Ericsson and Apple have signed a truce in the form of a multi-year patent licensing agreement. It includes a cross-licence relating to “patented cellular standard-essential technologies and grants certain other patent rights”.
They have also agreed to strengthen their technology and business collaboration, “including in technology, interoperability and standards development,” presumably in a bid to head off similar issues arising in future.
Details of the licensing agreement were not published but analysts believe that Apple will pay a significantly larger sum per quarter to Ericsson as the agreement was reached after Apple hit some bumps in the road as the court case between the two got started in Texas last week.
This settlement ends the lawsuits filed by both companies in several countries, including in the US District Court of the Eastern District of Texas, as well as the complaints filed before the US International Trade Commission (USITC).
Ericsson said in a statement that its IPR licensing revenues are still affected by several factors, such as expired patent licence agreements pending renewal, the technology shift from 4G to 5G, and possible currency effects and geopolitical impact going forward.
The Swedish vendor noted, “Including effects of the agreement with Apple covering sales from January 15, 2022, and including ongoing IPR business with all other licensees, Ericsson estimates the fourth quarter 2022 IPR licensing revenues will be SEK5.5 billion (€500 million) to SEK6 billion.
Christina Petersson, Chief Intellectual Property Officer at Ericsson says: “We are pleased to settle the litigations with Apple with this agreement, which is of strategic importance to our 5G licensing program. This will allow both companies to continue to focus on bringing the best technology to the global market.”