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China/EU: ZTE attacks IP giant for unfair licensing

By  |  June 18, 2014

Chinese telecommunications conglomerate ZTE has filed a formal complaint with the European Commission against patent aggregator Vringo, accusing the US firm of licensing its patents on unfair financial terms.

ZTE first announced its filing on Wednesday, arguing that despite negotiation attempts, Vringo has declined to license its intellectual property on what’s known as FRAND terms, or terms that are fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory.

In a statement, ZTE, which also holds patent licensing agreements with other technology giants including Qualcomm, Siemens, Microsoft and Ericsson, said it “reserves the right to pursue further action across different jurisdictions” regarding these licensing disagreements that, the company says, harm competition in the telecommunications industry.

ZTE released its announcement without response form Vringo.

Full content: Market Watch

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