Chinese court orders Samsung to pay $11.6m to Huawei in patent case

Samsung Electronics was ordered to pay Rmb80m ($11.6m) to Huawei Technologies in China over patent infringement as the South Korean company struggles to compete with fast-growing local players in the world’s largest mobile market.
A Chinese court in Quanzhou, Fujian province, ordered three units of Samsung including Samsung China Investment to pay the sum for infringing a mobile technology patent held by Huawei’s handset unit, Huawei Device, Samsung said on Thursday. The lawsuit was filed by Huawei last June.

The world’s second-largest smartphone maker said it is the first verdict and will not affect its phone sales in China as it is expected to take years to reach the final conclusion. The company said in a statement it will “thoroughly review the court’s decision and determine appropriate responses”.

Samsung has lost ground in China to local competitors such as Huawei, Oppo and Vivo in recent years as Chinese companies offer relatively premium smartphones at affordable prices. Third-ranked Huawei launched its latest flagship smartphone in February, seeking to bolster its global presence with rival Samsung humbled by last year’s Galaxy Note 7 recall fiasco.

Shares of Samsung fell 0.9 per cent on Thursday afternoon, underperforming a 0.5 per cent fall in the Kospi benchmark index.