huawei-logoThe Apple-backed "Rockstar consortium" has filed a joint motion with Huawei in U.S. District Court of Eastern Texas to dismiss with prejudice Rockstar's claims of patent infringement against the Chinese handset manufacturer. Though the motion does not mention a settlement amount, it is reasonable to expect there was some monetary licensing agreement that will allow Huawei to continue using the patents.

Pursuant to Rule 41(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the terms of a separate agreement, Plaintiffs Rockstar Consortium US LP and MobileStar Technologies LLC (collectively “Plaintiffs”) and Defendants Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd., Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., Huawei Device (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd., Huawei Technologies USA, Inc., Huawei Device USA Inc., Huawei Technologies Cooperatief U.A., and Futurewei Technologies, Inc. (collectively “Huawei”) hereby move the Court to dismiss with prejudice all of Plaintiffs’ claims against Huawei, including but not limited to any of Plaintiffs’ claims against any direct or indirect Huawei customer as is based in whole or in part upon the use of a Huawei product, with the parties to bear their own costs and fees, including attorneys’ fees.

Huawei is the first of seven Android OEMs cited in the original lawsuit to settle with Rockstar. Other high-profile companies mentioned in the suit include Google, Samsung, HTC, ZTE, LG, Pantech, and ASUSTeK. The decision by Huawei to settle may impact the other defendants in the case as it suggests to the court that Rockstar's claims of patent infringement may have reasonable merit. As a result, other OEMs may decide to pursue a settlement rather than fight the claims in court.

The patents in question are related search technology and user profiles. They were obtained by Rockstar as part of a patent collection the consortium purchased in 2011 from bankrupt Canadian communications company Nortel.

Top Rated Comments

Gasu E. Avatar
147 months ago
Am I the only one that (possibly naively) believes software patents should go public domain and not be considered sellable assets when a company fails?

It seems to me a fundamentally bad idea to have different rules of patent ownership for different classes of technology. If you had said "there need to be tighter standards for software patents", I think a lot of people would agree with that.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
glutenenvy Avatar
147 months ago
Am I the only one that (possibly naively) believes software patents should go public domain and not be considered sellable assets when a company fails?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iphone 17 air dummy unbox therapy

iPhone 17 Air's Extreme Thinness Demoed in New Video

Tuesday April 22, 2025 10:22 am PDT by
Apple plans to release an all-new super thin iPhone this year, debuting it alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We've seen pictures of dummy models, cases, and renders with the design, but Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy today showed off newer dummy models that give us a better idea of just how thin the "iPhone 17 Air" will be. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be ...
iphone 17 dummies sonny dickson

iPhone 17 Air Almost as Thin as Its Buttons, New Images Show

Thursday April 24, 2025 2:14 am PDT by
If you missed the video showing dummy models of Apple's all-new super thin iPhone 17 Air that's expected later this year, Sonny Dickson this morning shared some further images of the device in close alignment with the other dummy models in the iPhone 17 lineup, indicating just how thin it is likely to be in comparison. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be around 5.5mm thick – with a thicker ...
ipad air windows 11 arm

M2 iPad Air Runs Windows 11 ARM via Emulation, Thanks to EU Rules

Tuesday April 22, 2025 5:01 am PDT by
A developer has demonstrated Windows 11 ARM running on an M2 iPad Air using emulation, which has become much easier since the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulations came into effect. As spotted by Windows Latest, NTDev shared an instance of the emulation on social media and posted a video on YouTube (embedded below) demonstrating it in action. The achievement relies on new EU regulatory...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
iOS 18

iOS 18.5 Includes Only a Few Changes So Far

Monday April 21, 2025 11:00 am PDT by
Apple seeded the third beta of iOS 18.5 to developers today, and so far the software update includes only a few minor changes. The changes are in the Mail and Settings apps. In the Mail app, you can now easily turn off contact photos directly within the app, by tapping on the circle with three dots in the top-right corner. In the Settings app, AppleCare+ coverage information is more...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 13 New Features

Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...