Apple and Nokia Reach Agreement in Patent Licensing Dispute

Apple Scales of Justice

Apple and Nokia settled their patent licensing dispute on Monday and are besties again. Apple paid Nokia an undisclosed sum of money and agreed to ongoing payments, and Nokia is “providing certain network infrastructure product and services to Apple.”

Apple Scales of Justice
Apple and Nokia settle their differences in patent licensing dispute

Withings smart scales, heart rate monitors, and other health products will return to Apple stores, too. Nokia owns the Withings brand, and Apple stopped selling the products during the patent licensing dispute.

Now that the two companies are back on good terms, Nokia is giving the just announced deal a thumbs up. Nokia’s Chief Legal Officer Maria Varsellona said,

This is a meaningful agreement between Nokia and Apple. It moves our relationship with Apple from being adversaries in court to business partners working for the benefit of our customers.

Nokia filed patent infringement complaints against Apple in December 2016 after the two failed to come to terms over licensing payments. Apple claimed Nokia was demanding unfairly high licensing fees, and Nokia said it spent years trying to reach an agreement with the iPhone maker.

The patents in question cover technologies used on the iPhone such as antennas, chipsets, and more.

Apple’s statement on the agreement came from chief operating officer Jeff Williams and was less enthusiastic. “We are pleased with this resolution of our dispute and we look forward to expanding our business relationship with Nokia,” he said.

Apple and Nokia are also considering working together on what they’re calling “digital health initiatives.” They aren’t elaborating on what that collaboration may entail.

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