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Huawei has licensed key 5G technologies to Samsung. A Nikkei Asia report suggests that the two parties may have reached an agreement long before but the deal wasn’t publicized. The beleaguered Chinese company announced Friday that it has extended the licensing agreement with Samsung.
Unfortunately, Huawei didn’t disclose the specifics of the agreement. It’s unclear what 5G technologies Samsung is obtaining from the company as part of this deal. It could be anything from technologies related to 5G modems for smartphones to 5G networking gear for Samsung’s Network Division. Huawei has expertise in all of this.
Samsung has had issues with its 5G smartphone modems. Users of the Google Pixel 6 series, which features a Samsung-made custom processor called Tensor, complained about poor network reception. There haven’t been any such reports from Pixel 7 users. Maybe the Korean firm took help from Huawei in fixing the flaws on the second-gen Tenson chip. Samsung didn’t respond to a request for comment on this news, so it’s all up for speculation.
Patent licensing has become integral to Huawei’s business
A few years back, Huawei was a force to be reckoned with in the tech industry. It emerged as Samsung’s biggest challenger in the smartphone market, threatening to overthrow the long-term leader from the top spot. The company also established itself globally in many other tech facets. But then came the US sanctions. The Donald Trump-led US government imposed a trade ban on Huawei alleging a national security threat. This barred its access to any US-origin tech.
This trade ban effectively reduced Huawei to a China-only company. It now has little to no global presence, as several other countries have followed the US in removing the company’s 5G gear from their telecom infrastructure. The beleaguered firm is now licensing its patented technologies to rival firms as a source of income. Along with Samsung, Huawei also announced a global patent cross-licensing agreement with compatriot OPPO last week. As many as 20 firms have licensed its patents over the past few years.
Huawei reportedly made about $1.3 billion from patent licensing between 2019 to 2021 (via). It is making strategic investments in research and development (R&D) as part of its long-term plans. Reports claim nearly 55% of the company’s employees work in R&D. It is already the biggest patent holder in China and Europe, and the fifth-biggest in the US. Huawei may now be looking to strengthen its IP (Intellectual Property) portfolio in the coming years.