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Ericsson, Samsung kiss and make up
After the patent war, the cross-licence deal...

By Reuters

Published: Monday 09 July 2007

Ericsson and Samsung Electronics have signed a mobile telecommunication cross-licence deal and agreed to drop ongoing patent suits between the two companies.

South Korea's Samsung said in a filing with the Korea Exchange that the licence deal covers second-generation and advanced third-generation mobile telecommunications patents the two companies hold, without providing details.

Swedish telecommunications equipment maker Ericsson had sued Samsung in February 2006 in Germany, the Netherlands, the UK and the US and expanded the suit in August, alleging infringements of its patents by Samsung. Samsung had also filed a countersuit.

The legal dispute came after the two failed to renew a patent agreement that expired at the end of 2005.

Samsung declined to comment further about the patents in question but a company official had previously said the suit covered mobile phone parts and some functions.

Samsung is the world's third-biggest maker of mobile phones behind Finland's Nokia and US company Motorola.