Ericsson is suing Apple over the Cupertino firm’s continuing use of the Swedish company’s 5G patents in the iPhone, even though its licensing agreement has expired.
Ericsson’s two lawsuits cover a total of 12 separate patents. The two firms had engaged in negotiations that failed to reach a deal before the prior licensing deal had expired.
A report by IAM says the lawsuits were filed in the Western District of Texas, and also in at least one unknown jurisdiction outside the US.
“Apple first licensed Ericsson’s 2G and 3G Essential Patents in 2008 when it released the first iPhone,” state both of the suits. “In 2015, Apple and Ericsson executed another global cross-license, covering both parties’ patents related to the 2G, 3G, and 4G cellular standards.”
“Based on the expiration of those licenses,” they continue, “Apple is no longer licensed to Ericsson’s Essential Patents.”
The first lawsuit filing is related to four patents, including “the ‘355 Patent,” which concerns “Transmission of system information on a downlink shared channel.”
Eight other patents are listed in the second filing, including “the ‘454 Patent,” which concerns WAN and LAN roaming.
These recent lawsuit filings are not the first by either Ericsson or Apple. October 2021 saw Ericsson file a lawsuit intended to prevent Apple from filing a lawsuit that would attempt to devalue the patents by establishing that they were not essential.
Apple then sued Ericsson in December 2021, alleging Ericsson of using “strong-arm tactics” in its patent negotiations.