Transsion, which already controls 48% of the smartphone market in Africa and is one of the top five suppliers globally, is facing intellectual property claims from Qualcomm and Philips, accusing it of infringing patents owned by those companies.
Image source: Transsion
According to information Financial TimesAmerican Qualcomm filed a lawsuit against Transsion first in India, and then in Europe and China. Philips also filed a lawsuit against Transsion in India. The products of the accused smartphone manufacturer are known under the brands Tecno, Itel and Infinix. Finnish Nokia has also been unable to obtain payments from Transsion for the use of its patented technologies, according to sources.
According to Qualcomm spokesperson Ann Chaplin, Transsion has refused to license Qualcomm technologies that it uses in the bulk of its mobile product portfolio, so the rights holder will be forced to defend its interests in court. Qualcomm is seeking not only to protect its legal rights, but also to ensure a level playing field for all participants in the market that are licensees of the company’s technologies.
Transsion says it respects the rights of intellectual property owners and intends to reach technology licensing agreements with rights holders through “friendly negotiations.” In the case of Qualcomm, it already has an agreement with Transsion to use its patented technologies related to 5G smartphones. The Chinese company says it is following the terms of that licensing agreement.
Philips’ lawsuit against Transsion in India was filed back in January, but the parties declined to comment on the specifics to the Financial Times. Even in its home market of China, Transsion has not avoided litigation with competitors, since Huawei Technologies filed its own claims against it back in 2019. Transsion representatives, regardless of any opponent, spoke out about the unfairness of the patent policies of some copyright holders in some regions of the world. The rates of licensing royalties are sometimes inflated and divorced from the economic realities of a particular region, as well as from the established policy in the global market. Having achieved success in the markets of countries with growing economies, Transsion is now trying to gain a foothold in more prosperous regions, but is encountering resistance from competitors and partners in the field of licensing policy.
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