Qualcomm is reportedly stepping up to redesign the radio components used in the HTC One, after the International Trade Commission found that the smartphone violated two Nokia patents. Qualcomm and HTC have until January to tweak the chip, as that’s when the ITC will make a final ruling.
The HTC One uses Qualcomm’s MDM9215M 4G GSM/UMTS/LTE modem. According to Nokia and the ITC, HTC’s version of the chip uses technology patented by Nokia to enhance call quality. According to wireless patent law expert Florian Mueller, the two patents in question are U.S. Patent No. 6,393,260 on a “method for attenuating spurious signals and receiver” and U.S. Patent No. 7,415,247 on a “method and arrangement for transmitting and receiving RF signals through various radio interfaces of communication systems.”
HTC made a huge splash last winter when it debuted its HTC One smartphone at Mobile World Congress, but the months since February have been tough for the Taiwanese company. Component shortages delayed the U.S. launch of the HTC One with some carriers, and by the time the phone made it here newer devices were making headlines. Last month, HTC said the earnings would be lower than expected and that it will lay off a significant portion of its U.S. workforce.
This is not the first Nokia-related patent problem for the HTC One. Earlier this year, HTC “improved” the smartphone’s microphone by replacing the STMicroelectronics-made microphone after a court in The Netherlands found that the original mic infringed on a Nokia patent.
Florian Mueller says that HTC is “extremely good at defending against patent infringement claims,” but has been on a bit of a losing streak lately. Last week a German court decided in Nokia’s favor in a lawsuit brought by HTC subsidiary S3 Graphics, claiming infringemet of a video codec patent.
Nokia has one of the world’s richest wireless patent portfolios, and Microsoft gained exclusive rights to license those patents last month when it agreed to buy Nokia’s mobile device business.
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