Huawei and Qualcomm have entered into a multi-year patent licensing agreement covering technologies including 5G, computing, artificial intelligence and networking. The agreement includes cross-licensing arrangements covering the two companies’ respective patent portfolios. As part of the transaction, Qualcomm will also acquire certain Huawei patents in the US covering computing, AI, networking and other technology areas.
The transaction remains subject to the necessary regulatory approvals before it can close. The companies said the agreement reflects their approach to intellectual property licensing and practices consistent with fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) principles.
Huawei said the agreement reflects the company’s long-term investment in research and development and its contributions to mobile communications standards. “Huawei’s decades of sustained investment in fundamental R&D have driven innovation and progress in mobile communications and other technology fields,” said Alan Fan, Chief Intellectual Property Officer at Huawei.
Fan highlighted Huawei’s contributions to 4G and 5G standards, including the use of polar codes for signal transmission, and said the agreement recognises the value of the company’s intellectual property as well as Qualcomm’s contributions to communications technologies.
Qualcomm said its own investment in wireless technologies has supported successive generations of mobile communications and that the agreement reinforces its position in 5G technology and its standard-essential patent (SEP) licensing programme.
“Qualcomm has invested in foundational wireless technologies that have enabled successive generations of mobile innovation and earned broad recognition across the global wireless industry,” said John Han, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Qualcomm Technology Licensing.
Han added that the agreement also reflects Qualcomm’s recognition of Huawei’s ongoing development of intellectual property in 5G and other technology areas. The agreement comes as both companies continue to maintain substantial patent portfolios covering technologies used across communications, computing and emerging technology markets. Its completion will depend on the relevant regulatory approvals.
