Wednesday, January 2, 2013

InterDigital files new ITC complaint against Samsung, Nokia, ZTE, Huawei

Earlier today, InterDigital announced an extension of its wireless patent license agreement with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion "for a multi-year period" and "add[ing] coverage for 4G products, including LTE and LTE-Advanced products". A little later, the non-practicing entity with a focus on cellular standards-essential patents also announced a new ITC complaint against Samsung, Nokia, Huawei and ZTE, seeking U.S. import bans against those companies' products with 3G and 4G capabilities.

Three of the complainants -- Nokia, Huawei and ZTE -- were already targeted by another InterDigital (often referred to by its stock ticker symbol, IDCC) ITC complaint filed in June 2011.

Samsung and Nokia have a much longer history of litigation with InterDigital. At some point Nokia and IDCC settled their European lawsuits as well as a case relating to IDCC's 2G patents but have been unable to reach an agreement on IDCC's U.S. patents on 3G and 4G, which is why IDCC is still going after Nokia. Samsung and IDCC settled an earlier dispute in 2009. Apple routinely quotes in its pleadings from Samsung's 2007 FRAND case against IDCC in order to highlight contradictions between the positions Samsung took then and the ones it's taking now in support of its own SEP assertions against Apple.

Between now and early February the ITC may have to formulate a position on the availability of exclusion orders (i.e., import bans) over FRAND-pledged standard-essential patents, depending on whether Samsung will prevail on at least one SEP-in-suit it is asserting against Apple. If the outcome of the Samsung-Apple case hinges on FRAND issues, it will set a key precedent for other ITC complaints over SEPs, including today's new InterDigital complaint. In a worst-case scenario for IDCC, a decision in Apple's favor could turn today's complaint against Samsung, Nokia, ZTE and Huawei into a long shot.

These are the seven patents-in-suit:

  • U.S. Patent No. 7,190,966 on a "method and apparatus for performing an access procedure" (not asserted against Nokia in this complaint because it has been asserted in previous litigation)

  • U.S. Patent No. 7,286,847 a "method and apparatus for performing an access procedure" (not asserted against Nokia in this complaint because it has been asserted in previous litigation)

  • U.S. Patent No. 8,009,636 on a "method and apparatus for performing an access procedure" (not asserted against Nokia, Huawei and ZTE in this complaint because it has been asserted in previous litigation)

  • U.S. Patent No. 7,706,830 on a "method and subscriber unit for performing an access procedure" (not asserted against Nokia, Huawei and ZTE in this complaint because it has been asserted in previous litigation)

  • U.S. Patent No, 7,941,151 on a "method and system for providing channel assignment information used to support uplink and downlink channels"

  • U.S. Patent No, 7,616,970 on a "dual mode unit for short range, high rate and long range, lower rate data communications" (not asserted against Nokia, Huawei and ZTE in this complaint because it has been asserted in previous litigation)

  • U.S. Patent No. 7,502,406 on an "automatic power control system for a code division multiple access (CDMA) communications system" (not asserted against Nokia, Huawei and ZTE in this complaint because it has been asserted in previous litigation)

The accused Samsung devices include (but are not limited to) the ATIV S, Galaxy Note, Galaxy Note II, Galaxy Note 10.1, Galaxy S III, Galaxy Stellar, Galaxy Tab II (10.1), SCH-LC11, and 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot.

Simultaneously with today's ITC complaint, InterDigital also filed four complaints in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware against the four defendants and over the same patents.

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