Nokia Sues Amazon In India, US Over Video Patents

Washington, United States:

Finnish telecom giant Nokia said Tuesday it is suing Amazon in five global jurisdictions, including the United States and India, over patent infringements on video-related technologies. 

Nokia said it is also suing HP, formerly known as Hewlett-Packard, in a US court, also for using Nokia video technology without its permission.

“We’ve been in discussions with each of Amazon and HP for a number of years,” said Arvin Patel, Nokia’s chief licensing officer, in a blog post.

“But sometimes litigation is the only way to respond to companies who choose not to play by the rules followed and respected by others,” he added.

Suits against Amazon were also lodged in Germany, Britain and at the EU’s patent court.

The company said the cases involved Amazon’s Prime Video service as well devices that were in violation of Nokia’s patents on “video compression, content delivery, content recommendation and aspects related to hardware,” the blog post said. 

Nokia said the streaming market is estimated to reach $300 billion by 2027, but decried what it saw as a mismatch between those who invested in developing the technology “and those who benefit the most.”

The company said it had successfully reached agreements on such technology with Apple, Samsung and other device makers.

“Our preference is to reach amicable agreements with the companies who rely upon our technology, and our door remains open for constructive, good-faith negotiations,” Nokia’s Patel said.

Nokia earlier this month said it would cut up to 14,000 job as profits fell on weakening demand for its 5G equipment in North America.

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