Boston, MA 01/03/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Since Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) entered talks and inked a sale deal with Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) for its handset unit, the Finnish company has been aggressively protecting its patents.
Perhaps this is the reason tech manufacturers in China appealed to the government to ensure that Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) does not raise its patent licensing fees. The manufacturers feared that the company having reduced its business size and looking to raise its revenue income, it could embark on hiking patent fees to meet its revenue target.
At least Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) has stayed clear of such talks and is only pursuing companies that it thinks have infringed its patent rights. One such company is HTC Corp (TPE:2498).
Bluetooth patent violation
In Germany, Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) is pursuing HTC Corp and is seeking a ban of the latter’s devices which it says use its Bluetooth technology without consent. A court in Munich last week cleared the way for Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) to ensure enforcement of a ban of HTC Corp products that infringe its technology rights.
The devices in question include HTC One which is a flagship smartphone developed by HTC Corp and is selling in Germany as well as the larger European market. HTC Corp has sought to differ with the court ruling against it and is expected to lodge a petition. Nonetheless, the company is also reported to be exploring options to modify its data transfer technology to sidestep Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK)’s patent claims.
This is the second patent case involving Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) and HTC Corp that has been decided in Europe in as many weeks. Earlier last month, Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) took its war against HTC to UK over infringement of its wireless technology, citing HTC One mini.
Patent monetization
Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) is clearly out to defend its technologies at all cost. Perhaps this is out of the realization that now with its handset business out of the picture, it needs to fully monetize its patents to shore up its revenue that has been declining. Nokia Technologies is one of the three business units that the company is now left with after selling its devices wing to Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) for about $7.2 billion.
