In Germany, Lenovo and its subsidiary Motorola find themselves unable to sell some of their products.
The recent affair between Lenovo and InterDigital in Germany will strangely remind you of the one which involved Nokia and Oppo.
In the case of Nokia, a patent battle also resulted in a temporary ban on the sale of Oppo products. It took an agreement between the two companies a few months later.
It is in this tense context that Lenovo and Motorola find themselves facing a similar situation, this time with the American InterDigital.
A story of an InterDigital patent
According to a ruling by the Munich Regional Court, Lenovo and Motorola used an InterDigital patent without license, leading to the ban on the sale of smartphones and laptops equipped with cellular modems in Germany.
All devices with 4G or 5G technology are affected. Despite Lenovo’s appeal, the ban remains in force thanks to a deposit of four million euros paid by InterDigital. We are talking about Motorola smartphones, but also Lenovo laptops equipped with 4G/5G modems.
Lenovo criticizes InterDigital for not offering fair and equitable licensing prices, while InterDigital accuses Lenovo of refusing these terms.
Not the first time
The case in Germany is just the latest chapter in a series of legal confrontations between these two entities.
In June 2023, Lenovo obtained a favorable judgment in Great Britain, where the fees imposed by InterDigital were deemed excessive. However, it remains to be seen whether the German appeals court will take a similar position.