Samsung Electronics won a ruling from a local court in the ongoing patent lawsuit against Chinese telecommunications equipment company ZTE in the United Kingdom, Reuters reported on the 25th.
According to the report, the High Court in London recognized a temporary license using standard essential patents (SEPs), citing Samsung's request.
Earlier, Samsung Electronics argued that patent holders like ZTE should agree to provide a temporary license until the trial outcome is reached.
Samsung Electronics requested that the UK court set fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms, while ZTE claimed it should follow the FRAND terms set by the Chinese court.
The FRAND principle was introduced to prevent unfair practices that may arise when the holders of standard patent technologies apply discriminatory usage conditions to competitors. Global companies can use each other's SEPs to create products, thereby preventing unreasonable disputes that may occur in the process.
However, interpretations of FRAND principles differ by country, often becoming points of contention in global patent disputes.
In this lawsuit, the UK court acknowledged a temporary license for Samsung, stating that "ZTE excluded FRAND terms to render UK court procedures meaningless."
Samsung Electronics filed a lawsuit against ZTE in the High Court of London last December, requesting a judgment on the FRAND terms of the patent license. ZTE has also filed counterclaims against Samsung Electronics in China, Germany, Brazil, and other countries.