Oppo shared with Frandroid its point of view on the case Nokia is facing, threatening its presence in France and other European countries, and the possible consequences of the ongoing trial. The Chinese company puts forward its arguments.
Oppo Reno 8 Pro // Source: official website
Since the end of March, everyone has been holding their breath at the mention of Oppo. The company and its French subsidiary in particular are going through difficult times. It is even rumored that a departure from France would be possible, bringing with it the OnePlus subsidiary.
Pretty quickly after the first rumors started doing the rounds last March, it became clear to everyone that one very specific element was destined to shape Oppo’s future: a court case with Nokia attacking it for patent misuse. In Germany, the same lawsuit led to Oppo’s cessation of sales for the same reasons, so there’s reason to take the issue seriously.
The case is still under discussion
Asked about the matter by the Frandroid editorial team, Oppo answered our queries in an official press release. The company first recalls its position on this issue.
We always try our best to solve the problem amicably with Nokia. Oppo attaches great importance to the role of intellectual property in innovation. Oppo has a history of cross-licensing agreements with many industry leaders, including Nokia in 2018. At Oppo, we believe that a reasonable royalty for a cross-licensing structure should fairly reflect the value of both parties’ patents.
As a reminder, the two companies had signed an agreement to use Nokia patents in 2018, an agreement that has expired. Since then, the two parties have been unable to agree on a tariff, leading to a legal dispute. “We believe that the value of Oppo’s 5G patent portfolio, which also benefits Nokia, was underestimated by Nokia in this particular case,” Oppo said.
Oppo threatens a domino effect
Interestingly, the company is threatening a domino effect should Nokia triumph. In fact, Oppo tells us that a successful Nokia would motivate other companies to launch the same type of lawsuit against other competing brands, leading to a slowdown in innovation and a significant loss of competition in the European market. This is how the company explains it.
Oppo strives to always promote a healthy intellectual property ecosystem. Oppo’s main concern is that paying unreasonably high patent royalties will encourage other patent-holding companies to follow suit, harming innovation and the long-term development of the industry.
The company cites, without naming them, competitors who could suffer the same penalty. “Customers will also have fewer choices in the marketplace if exorbitant patent fees drive competing brands out of certain markets. »
Oppo’s efforts to calm down in France
The company also wants to be reassuring when it comes to customer support, regardless of the outcome of this whole matter. “Our top priority is to continue to provide excellent service to our existing users in France. Users can continue to use Oppo products, access customer support, receive future OS updates, etc. Nothing changes for end users. »
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