Huawei hits Verizon with lawsuits alleging patent infringement

From CNET: Huawei on Thursday launched a pair of patent infringement lawsuits against Verizon, alleging the US carrier used 12 of its patents without authorization. The controversial Chinese company's suits were filed in United States District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Texas.

It's seeking compensation for the use of networking, download security and video communication technology it says are covered by 12 patents.

"Verizon's products and services have benefited from patented technology that Huawei developed over many years of research and development," Dr. Song Liuping, Huawei's chief legal officer, said in a release. "Huawei is simply asking that Verizon respect Huawei's investment in research and development by either paying for the use of our patents, or refraining from using them in its products and services."

The company noted that it negotiated with Verizon "for a significant period of time," but couldn't agree on license terms. Huawei's R&D expenditure reached $15 billion (nearly 15% of its annual revenue) in 2018 and it's received more than $1.4 billion in patent license fees since 2015, it said.

Verizon dismissed Huawei's move as "nothing more than a PR stunt" in an email to CNET, and highlighted the fact that it was filed "in the very early morning."

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