Japan is an important market for Google. According to data from StatCounter, Google currently ranks second with a market share of 5.81%, far behind the Apple iPhone with a gigantic 62.46%, but just ahead of Samsung and Xiaomi. However, smartphones from the Pixel 7 series have been banned from retail sales there due to a patent dispute with South Korean mobile phone company Pantech.
As MLex reports, a district court in Tokyo has ruled that Google has infringed a standards essential patent relating to the LTE modem in Pixel smartphones. Such patents are required for manufacturing products, which is why they must be licensed under fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory conditions. According to Pantech, Google has been using the exact method described in the patent to handle communication between Pixel smartphones and cell towers, but did not license the patent.
The court stressed that preliminary injunctions for standard essential patents (SEP) are only possible if the defendant has not attempted to obtain a license for the respective patent. Google had delayed negotiations and insisted on conditions such as a confidentiality clause, which Pantech argued was completely unnecessary. Google also refused to propose a “reasonable” royalty rate during the proceedings, claiming that calculating it would be “too complex”.
After Google refused to provide the court with data on the sales figures of Pixel smartphones in Japan, the sales ban on the Pixel 7 series was imposed. Pantech has already filed a lawsuit to halt sales of the Pixel 8 and Pixel 9 as well as the corresponding Pro models. If Google is unable to reach an agreement with Pantech, the company may be forced to withdraw from the Japanese market
I hate to side with Google, but intellectual property and especially patent law is stupid.
I hate to side with Google on this one, but this is a stupid patent. Communicating with a cell tower is a basic principle of phone design. How you can give out fundamental patents for that shit is beyond me
All patents are stupid. Seriously, I’ve written one, although of course only the boss gets credit for the property. It’s a disgusting process where you try to destroy any chance of innovation in the name of money.
Reclassifying patents as anti-competitive behavior alone would fix so much in the market.
Considering other patent laws in Japan, I definitely agree with you.
Especially when companies like Nintendo are somehow able to patent video game mechanics for something as ridiculous as riding on a flying creature.
Especially AFTER a successful competitor comes along after decades of holding ip hostage. Mind bogling
How cell phones work is ridiculously complicated. Going from analog, to time-domain shenanigans, to binary wizard math, is why you can watch 720p video and whine that it’s not 1080p.
wizard math
This show was genial! Shame it had only 2 seasons. https://imdb.com/title/tt1621748/
does google make their own modems? how many ways can you really communicate with a cell tower?
how many ways can you really communicate with a cell tower?
Analog encoding assigns each device in a cell its own frequency range.
Time-domain multiplexing assigns each device a fraction of a second to transmit.
Quadrature phase-shift keying alters the timing of a signal to convey data.
Orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing has each device transmit the same signal over P out of Q bands, such that each device’s signal can be reconstructed by knowing which bands it transmitted on.
There’s a fucking reason your phone is faster now than in 2010.
They bought Motorola back in the day. I always assumed it was for the patent portfolio.
Yes it was, that’s why they kept the patents when they sold Motorola.
Considering, its the 2nd largest seller in Japan. It should do something ASAP unless they want to give away their position. Sony and others could always use a boost of sales if they capitalize on this opportunity correctly.
Japan is an important market for Google. According to data from StatCounter, Google currently ranks second with a market share of 5.81%, far behind the Apple iPhone with a gigantic 62.46%, but just ahead of Samsung and Xiaomi.
And no mention of Sony. What a bummer.
You would think they would be preferred as the sole Android manufacturer in their home market. Really goes to show how awful if a job Sony has done in the mobile market.
Really? Of all things… Basic math is too complicated for Google to figure out royalties? I think someone might not be telling the truth
