On Tuesday, December 17th, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) announced that it had issued a preliminary ruling stating that smartphones produced by Motorola Mobility, a subsidiary of China’s Lenovo Group, have infringed on patents held by Ericsson. If the ruling is upheld, the U.S. may ban the import of these smartphones.
In the preliminary ruling, an ITC judge stated that smartphones under Lenovo’s umbrella have infringed on Ericsson’s patents related to 5G wireless technology. This signifies a preliminary victory for the Swedish company, Ericsson, in its international patent dispute with the Chinese Lenovo Group.
Representatives from both companies declined to comment immediately on this ruling.
Reuters noted that the full ITC panel will make a final determination on Ericsson’s allegations in April 2025. Another judge at the ITC ruled in Lenovo’s favor in a related case last month.
In 2023, Ericsson lodged a complaint with the ITC based in Washington, accusing Motorola’s Moto G, Edge, and Razr series smartphones of infringing on wireless communication-related patents. Lenovo denied these accusations.
These two companies are also entangled in patent litigations in South America, the United Kingdom, and the state of North Carolina. Ericsson emerged victorious in infringement cases in Brazil and Colombia, where courts issued preliminary injunctions prohibiting the sale of Lenovo smartphones in those regions.
In October 2023, Ericsson filed a lawsuit against the Lenovo Group and its subsidiary Motorola in a North Carolina state court, alleging patent infringement related to 5G and delaying negotiations on mutual licensing agreements.
Ericsson accused Lenovo of infringing on four patents – U.S. Patent Numbers 10425817, 10306669, 11317342, and 11515893. These patents mainly pertain to 5G communication and involve Lenovo’s smartphones, laptops, personal computers, and tablets.
As per previously disclosed information, Ericsson’s 5G patent licensing fee is set at $5 per high-end handheld device, with the fee potentially dropping to as low as $2.5 per low-end device.
In December 2023, Lenovo filed a counterclaim in the Eastern District of North Carolina court, seeking to block Ericsson from enforcing the injunctions issued by courts in Brazil and Colombia. The District court rejected Lenovo’s injunction application in the first instance. However, the appellate court subsequently dismissed the District court’s decision, remanding the case back to the Eastern District of North Carolina for a rehearing.