Huawei asserting telecom strengths with lawsuit

Tech and IP experts in China said Huawei's lawsuit against Samsung claiming infringement of smartphone patents is a strong indication that the company's influence in the telecom industry is rapidly growing.

Huawei filed its lawsuit last week against the South Korean tech giant in two courts, in California and in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, claiming infringements of the Chinese company's fourth-generation cellular communications technology, operating system and its user interface software.

The lawsuit marks a reversal of roles in the country - Chinese companies have more often appeared as the defendant in patent fights.

Xiang Ligang, an independent telecom analyst and founder of the industry website cctime.com, believes that Huawei has a strong chance of winning the case. He said the lawsuit will "encourage more Chinese enterprises, especially internet companies, to invest more in research and development".

The lawsuit also shows that Huawei is a major patent holder in the telecom industry.

"With so many years of investing in research and innovation, Huawei has accumulated valuable technologies that will ensure better growth. It is also more able to protect itself legally," Xiang said.

Huawei has a staff of 80,000 in research and development and annually invests $9.2 billion in R&D, about 15 percent of its global sales. By the end of 2015, the company had been granted 50,377 patents globally.

Zhang Ping, an IP professor at Peking University's school of law, said Huawei is exhibiting its strengths in patents.

"Competition among nations depends not only on technological strengths, but also on the ability of a company to turn its innovations into patents," Zhang said.

Innovation is a time-consuming task and Huawei has set a good example for Chinese companies, she added.

In the first quarter of this year, Huawei ranked third in smartphone sales worldwide.

Jin Di, a research manager at IDC China, said in an email to China Daily that patent protection and litigation can serve as a strong driving factor to help Huawei maintain growing momentum and reconfigure the landscape of the world's handset markets. Other factors include product innovation, cooperation and localized marketing.

Jin also said advantages in IP are vital to a company's plan of increasing revenue.

Internet analyst Ge Jia, however, said in a blog that companies should remain cautious on patent litigation.

"Patent litigation is a double-edged sword - remaining silent is irresponsible ... while excessive protection may impede technical progress and is unfavorable to customers - so it is critical to know how to draw the line," he said.

Ge said Huawei pointing the finger at Samsung is a positive competitive approach because the Chinese company is looking to firmly implement its global strategy.

He said Huawei will also expect to reach patent cross-licensing agreements with Samsung.

Huawei filed the most international patent applications in 2014 and 2015, though its number of patents is far behind Samsung's total. It has signed cross-licensing agreements with dozens of its competitors, not including Samsung, Ge said.

Ahn Seong-ho, director of Samsung's intellectual property center, said the company is considering "countermeasures" to Huawei's charge, including a lawsuit of its own.