ASUS has filed a lawsuit against Samsung, accusing it of infringing its patent rights on wireless technology in Samsung Galaxy 4G and 5G devices, including the recent Galaxy Z Flip5 foldable model.
Image source: ASUS
Despite its weak presence in the smartphone market, ASUS has accumulated a very impressive portfolio of patents, the violation of which threatens other companies with litigation. Even if we are talking about the world’s largest smartphone manufacturer, Samsung. ASUS sent a request to Samsung a year and a half ago to pay a license fee for the use of its patented technologies, but the companies did not reach an agreement.
ASUS has been investing in mobile technology for many years and has accumulated a significant patent portfolio. This not only brings her licensing income, but also serves as protection from possible legal threats. Recently, ASUS created two companies, ASUS Technology Licensing and Innovative Sonic Limited, transferring the rights to own patents to them. The organizations transferred their portfolios to the management of a subsidiary of Celerity IP LLC, whose legal interests are represented by GLS Capital. One standard wireless patent owned by Celerity IP LLC is being sued against Samsung in the Eastern District of Texas. This patent describes a “method and apparatus for improving data transmission using a configured resource in a wireless communication system” and applies to smartphones that support 4G and 5G wireless communication standards.
ASUS entered the mobile phone market back in 2003, but never became a leading player in it. According to DigiTimes, by the end of 2023, ASUS, according to its own forecasts, expects to sell a total of 600 thousand ROG Phone and Zenfone smartphones. For comparison, Samsung shipped more than 260 million of its smartphones to the market in 2022 alone.
Litigations over standard patents typically take many years, and even if the court forces Samsung to pay ASUS for using its technology, it is unlikely that this will increase the profitability of the latter’s smartphone segment. On the other hand, the two companies could enter into a cross-licensing agreement. But as with any litigation, such a case can also take several years to resolve in court.
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