Qualcomm, Nokia resume legal wars in Britain
updated 12:50 pm EST, Mon November 26, 2007
Qualcomm vs. Nokia in UK
The ongoing legal conflict between Qualcomm and Nokia has entered a new phase, Reuters reports. On Monday, the British High Court began hearing a case brought by the former company, which alleges that the latter violated two European patents relating to GSM phones: one for controlling power on radio links, and another for using intermittent reception to extend battery life. Should Qualcomm win the dispute, Nokia will be forbidden from selling phones with the technology to anywhere in Britain, severely harming its profits.
The first phase of the hearing will last three weeks, and is being used to gauge whether or not the patents are valid and have been broken. Once this has been concluded, the case will only be fully resolved in the wake of a second stretch of court appearances.
Over a dozen lawsuits are in progress between the two companies, which have been fighting since a licensing agreement was allowed to expire on April 9th. Analysts say that Nokia is hoping to reduce its payments to Qualcomm, which still amount to approximately $500 million annually. The company was hit with a setback last week, however, when a judge dismissed an American lawsuit entirely.
