Huawei, qui détient l’un des plus importants portefeuilles de brevets au monde, poursuit son offensive pour monétiser au mieux ces actifs. Ce mercredi, ce fleuron de la tech chinoise a annoncé avoir conclu un accord avec son rival Xiaomi dans les smartphones. Il s’agit, plus précisément, d’un accord mondial de licences croisées, lequel couvre les technologies de communication, et notamment la 5G.
Huawei and Xiaomi have resolved a longstanding conflict with this agreement. In March, Huawei reportedly filed a lawsuit against its competitor for alleged infringement of four registered patents, which involved wireless communication, smartphone photography, and screen locking technology.
A agreement with Ericsson.
Huawei, which has over 100,000 researchers and invests about a quarter of its revenue in research and development each year, has been working hard for years to share its patents with as many industries as possible. And of course, to profit from it. At the end of August, the Shenzhen group even signed an agreement with its main rival, the Swedish telecom equipment manufacturer Ericsson, to mutually use their technologies. This announcement was also a dig at the United States. Washington is making every effort to encourage Europe to sever ties with Huawei, accused by the White House of spying on behalf of Beijing.
Huawei affirme avoir conclu, à ce jour, près de 200 accords de licences de brevets bilatéraux. Le groupe cite notamment ses concurrents Samsung, Oppo, ou encore des constructeurs automobiles de premier plan, comme Mercedes-Benz, Audi, BMW, Porsche, Subaru ou encore Renault. Ces activités s’avèrent profitables : Huawei affirme avoir tiré 560 millions de dollars de ses différentes licences l’an dernier.
