Today, Vivo and Nokia announced a multi-year patent cross-licensing agreement, ending a legal battle over 5G technology. This comes a few weeks after Nokia settled a similar dispute with another BBK Electronics brand, Oppo.
Under the terms of the agreement, Vivo will have access to Nokia’s core mobile technology patents, but will make ongoing payments to Nokia for their use.
It is noteworthy that these payments will also include “catch-up” payments that will cover the period of the dispute. The good news is that the agreement resolves all outstanding legal issues between the two companies.
For those who didn’t know, Nokia raised a legal dispute claiming that brands from BBK Electronics’ portfolio, such as Vivo and Oppo, were infringing on patents for 5G wireless technology. This eventually led to a lawsuit and the subsequent defeat of these smartphone brands in court.
Following the court ruling, Oppo, Vivo, OnePlus, and Realme were forced to withdraw from the German market. However, Oppo and Vivo’s recent 5G patent agreement with Nokia paves the way for the BBK brands to return to the German market. In fact, OnePlus has already started selling its latest models, the OnePlus 12 and 12R, in the country.
“We are delighted to have reached an agreement with vivo that reflects a mutual respect for each other’s intellectual property rights,” said Jenny Lukander, President of Nokia Technologies. “We look forward to bringing more innovation to users around the world through our collaboration.”
Vivo CEO Xianwen Xu also expressed her satisfaction with the deal, emphasizing the company’s commitment to research and development and providing users with high-tech products.
The deal, most importantly, paves the way for Nokia‘s return to Germany, a key market for the company. It is also worth noting that this is Nokia’s 6th major license agreement in the smartphone industry in the last 13 months. The company has already signed agreements with Apple, Samsung, OPPO, Honor, and Huawei.
