Context: Nokia has licensing agreements with all major Western manufacturers of point-of-sale payment devices and signed its first agreement with a Chinese terminal maker, PAX Technology, last August (September 23, 2024 ip fray article). Previously, Nokia had only sued one (Western) payment terminal maker, Verifone, which they then settled in August (August 14, 2024 ip fray article). SUNMI (a Chinese POS vendor) filed an action in the Yunnan Kunming Intermediate Court seeking a global FRAND rate-setting for Nokia’s 2G, 3G, 4G cellular and 802.11 SEP portfolio in January 2025.
What’s new: Nokia has filed two cases in Germany and two cases in the Unified Patent Court (UPC) in response to that action. It also requested and has since been granted anti-antisuit injunctions (AASIs) by the Regional Court of Munich and the UPC Local Division in Munich. In a statement today, it emphasized that “the companies have been in discussions for years and [Nokia] are disappointed that this matter could not be resolved amicably”.
Direct impact: This marks the third AASI to be granted by the UPC – all three of which have been handed down in the Munich Local Division. The first publicly-known AASIs emerged in Huawei v. Netgear at the end of last year (December 23, 2024 ip fray article). Meanwhile, last month, it was revealed that Avago (Broadcom) had actually been granted the UPC’s first-ever AASI (January 16, 2025 ip fray article).
Wider ramifications: The case could also have a bearing on two sets of current interim license proceedings in the England & Wales Court of Appeal between Amazon and Nokia (February 2, 2025 ip fray article) and Lenovo and Ericsson (February 18, 2025 ip fray article). Further, it is the second to emerge in the last 24 hours in which a patent owner has sued a Chinese implementer in a court in Germany (and more specifically, Munich). Yesterday, it became known that Avanci licensor Sol IP sued Chinese automaker BYD in the Regional Court of Munich over 4G SEPs (19 February, 2025 ip fray article).
China-based SUNMI was founded in 2013 as a joint venture between Xiaomi and Ant Group (formerly Ant Financial, Alibaba). Its global headquarters are in Singapore.
The patents asserted include:
- EP3220562 and EP3799333: (“Allocation of preamble sequences”)
- EP3557917: (“Method and apparatus for providing efficient discontinuous communication”)
- EP2243229: (“Method and apparatus for conveying antenna configuration information via masking”)
Nokia said in a statement today:
“SUNMI’s point-of-sale payment devices use a mix of Nokia’s patented cellular technologies and Wi-Fi standards fundamental inventions. We have been in discussions with SUNMI for several years and are disappointed that this matter could not be resolved amicably. We hope that SUNMI – like their competitors – will agree to a license on fair and reasonable terms covering the use of our technologies in their devices.”
This case is among several others in which one side or the other is seeking to gain a tactical advantage from decisions in one jurisdiction that derail proceedings in another. AAIs have proved effective in recent years, such as in Huawei v. Netgear.
However, so far, anti-antisuit injunctions have only related specifically to antisuit injunctions. The concept could also soon be extended to interim license requests.
Under Munich case law, the pursuit of a forcible global FRAND license on court-determined terms suggests that an antisuit injunction may be imminent. On that basis, AASIs are granted.
“The UPC’s Munich Local Division and the Munich I Regional Court have a “zero tolerance” policy when they respond forcefully to unlawful foreign interference with their cases. Lord Justice Arnold and his peers, and especially the parties who try to capitalize on outrageous UK decisions, may soon learn that lesson in connection with interim licenses. No single jurisdiction has the right to be the world’s sole FRAND forum. Those who think otherwise must learn the hard way.”
Florian Mueller
Founder & Publisher of ip fray
The Munich court also notably said in an InterDigital v. Xiaomi decision that an implementer who attempts to derail German enforcement proceedings through foreign litigation may be deemed an unwilling licensee (and, therefore, enjoined when an SEP infringement is found) for that reason alone – or for that reason in conjunction with others.
Judges
In the UPC, the case is being handled by Presiding Judge Voss in the Local Division of Munich and Presiding Judge Prof. Dr. Tochtermann in the Local Division in Mannheim.
In Germany, the case is being handled by Presiding Judge Dr. Kircher of the 2nd Chamber of the Regional Court of Mannheim and Presiding Judge Dr. Werner of the 21st Chamber of the Regional Court of Munich.