Erick Robinson's China Patent Blog
Erick Robinson's China Patent Blog
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Contact

Is Qualcomm picking on Meizu, and does it matter?

11/5/2016

1 Comment

 
Picture
Picture
Picture
IP Watchdog has a good post on Qualcomm and its patent fight(s) with Meizu, the Chinese smartphone company.

I do wonder why Qualcomm went to the ITC, Germany, and France, though. It appears little is gained as the Chinese suit is cut and dry and should provide Qualcomm complete relief because Chinese patent law bans exports of infringing items and all of Meizu's phones are made in China. Plus, such possible overkill may add to the sense in China that Qualcomm is acting unfairly based on its market position. Now, I am not sympathetic to Meizu's actions. The Chinese antitrust authorities took two years investigating Qualcomm and carefully crafting a settlement that they believed was fair to domestic smartphone makers. This settlement gave Chinese handset companies far and away the best deal from Qualcomm both in terms of the royalty rates and the base from which the rate is calculated. Plus, all of the other Chinese smartphone makers signed the same deal with Qualcomm that has been rejected by Meizu (Vivo and Oppo signed only weeks after Qualcomm's suits against Meizu). Indeed, Qualcomm has been chopped off at the knees in China and Meizu still wants more. This does not seem very fair.

That said, China does not have to be "fair" to anyone but itself. It is a huge market (the smartphone market is now larger than the rest of the world combined) that cannot be ignored. And yes, it is extremely nationalistic. The government wants to protect its businesses and its people. The rules in China are not complicated, though. Be a friend to China, and you get to participate. And that is what worries me about Qualcomm going after Meizu in the US ITC, Germany, and France. These actions may seem like unnecessary bullying to the Chinese government and antitrust agencies. That could be a serious strategic mistake for Qualcomm, especially given that (at least to my knowledge) Meizu is not currently selling phones in the US, Germany , or France. My advice would have been to heed the Beatles and Let It Be. Let the Chinese litigation work its way through. It moves at light speed anyway and Qualcomm will surely win. Or at least it would have before appearing to become a bully.

Again, I don't have a dog in this fight, but poking China (or Chinese companies) in the eye is never a smart move.
​ Is there something I am missing?

1 Comment
Don Merino
11/5/2016 08:53:51 pm

I think you are exactly correct - little to gain vs. bad PR in China kind of a dumb mistake on an otherwise smart move by QCOM

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Picture
    Picture
    Follow @RobinsonErick

    Subscribe to the China Patent Blog by Email
    Welcome to the China Patent Blog by Erick Robinson.  Erick Robinson's China Patent Blog discusses China's patent system and China's surprisingly effective procedures for enforcing patents.  China is leading the world in growth in many areas.  Patents are among them.  So come along with Erick Robinson while he provides a map to the complicated and mysterious world of patents and patent litigation in China.  

    Author

    Erick Robinson is an experienced American trial lawyer and U.S. patent attorney formerly based in Beijing and now based in Texas. He is a Patent Litigation Partner and Co-Chair of the Intellectual Property Practice at Spencer Fane LLP, where he manages patent litigation, licensing, and prosecution in China and the US.

    Picture
    View my profile on LinkedIn

    Categories

    All
    5-year Plan
    Amendments
    Articles
    China
    China Patent Law
    China Supreme People's Court
    Chinese Antitrust Law
    Chinese Patents
    CNIPA
    Damages
    Foreign Patentees
    Government
    Huawei
    Intel
    Interdigital
    Other Blogs
    Qualcomm
    Royalties
    Semiconductor
    SEPs
    SIPO

    Archives

    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    September 2020
    May 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    July 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015



    ​Disclaimer:

    The ideas and opinions at ChinaPatentBlog.com are my own as of the time of posting, have not been vetted with my firm or its clients, and do not necessarily represent the positions of the firm, its lawyers, or any of its clients. None of these posts is intended as legal advice and if you need a lawyer, you should hire one. Nothing in this blog creates an attorney-client relationship. If you make a comment on the post, the comment will become public and beyond your control to change or remove it.

    RSS Feed