Lenovo can fight 5G rulings for Ericsson in South America, US court rules

Oct 24 - Lenovo (0992.HK) on Thursday convinced a U.S. appeals court to revive its bid to halt court orders that Ericsson (ERICb.ST) won in Brazil and Colombia in the companies' patent licensing dispute over 5G wireless technology.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit agreed with Lenovo that a North Carolina judge should reconsider the company's request for an order to block rulings that Lenovo must stop selling smartphones in the some South American countries that allegedly infringe Ericsson's patents.

An Ericsson spokesperson declined to comment on the decision. Lenovo said in a statement that the decision was positive "for Lenovo and for the greater good of the industry as we seek guidance, fairness and transparency in licensing negotiations."

Owners of patents covering technology that devices must include to comply with international standards must offer licenses on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms. Disputes over FRAND licensing have led to global legal battles in the telecom industry.

Ericsson sued Lenovo in North Carolina last year for infringing patents and breaking its FRAND commitment after the companies failed to agree on licensing terms for their 5G patents.

Ericsson had filed related lawsuits against Lenovo in Colombia and Brazil, where courts later issued preliminary orders blocking sales of Lenovo smartphones accused of misusing Ericsson's 5G technology. Lenovo had asked the North Carolina court to stop Ericsson from enforcing the orders, and U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle had ruled for Ericsson.

A three-judge Federal Circuit panel ruled on Thursday that Boyle must reconsider whether Ericsson had complied with the international standards requirement to negotiate licenses "in good faith" before seeking injunctive relief like the South American orders.

The case is Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson v. Lenovo (United States) Inc, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, No. 24-1515.