You may know about Nokia-Apple patent licensing deal! Under terms of this deal, Apple paid one time huge sum and is committed to pay ongoing royalties to Nokia. While the one time sum paid and the ongoing royalty amount have been rumored and talked about a lot, there has been no insight into the duration of this deal. Now, the infamous patentgate scandal, which exposed Samsung executives illegally accessing Nokia-Apple patent deal document, has also thrown light on the duration of this licensing deal.
In a filing, Samsung has revealed that the licensing deal covers a period from June 12, 2011 to December 31, 2016.
“Third, Apple does not dispute that its separate license with competitor Nokia covers the ‘381 patent. Instead, it contends that this license is not relevant because it is a ”provisional license’ for a limited ‘standstill’ period.’ […] But the Apple-Nokia license did not simply resolve claims for past damages; it is forward-looking and covers the period from June 12, 2011 to December 31, 2016.”
FOSS patent opines that Apple and Nokia may have to renegotiate a new license deal well in advance of 2016, as Apple terms this deal as ”provisional license’ for a limited ‘standstill’ period. With its new-found IPR aggression, Nokia may ink some really valuable deals in coming time. After all it has just monetized 10% of its patent portfolio yet.
Source: FOSS patents
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