German Court rules Huawei, ZTE products infringe patents

DENVER, Colorado - MPEG LA said today that the District Court in Dusseldorf, Germany had ruled that Huawei Technologies Deutschland GmbH (Huawei) and ZTE Deutschland GmbH (ZTE) had infringed patents of two patent holders in MPEG LA's AVC Patent Portfolio License by using their technologies in mobile phones that implement the AVC/H.264 (MPEG-4 Part 10) Standard.

The court also found that the license offered by the patent holders under those patents through the AVC License was fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory.

"The Landgericht Dusseldorf's decision confirms the importance of respect for intellectual property, and offering everyone easy and affordable access to essential AVC technology under a single license is a cornerstone of the MPEG LA AVC License's wide acceptance making that possible," said Larry Horn, President and CEO of MPEG LA.

 "We continue to welcome Huawei and ZTE to join the nearly 2,000 Licensees who have entered into our AVC License."

Verdicts in additional cases brought by AVC License patent holders against Huawei and ZTE before the Landgericht Dusseldorf are expected to be handed down in December. The decisions can be appealed by the defendants

MPEG LA describes itself as the world's leading provider of one-stop licenses for standards and other technology platforms. www.mpegla.com (ATI).