Samsung plans to get back at Huawei by filing counter-suit in latest mobile patent battle

A day after news emerged of Chinese electronics manufacturer Huawei suing Samsung over cellular patent infringements, the latter has shot back saying it will file a counter-suit. Huawei had accused Samsung of infringing on close to 11 patents related to cellular networks and software running on its Long Term Evolution (LTE) devices.

"We will take countermeasures, including a lawsuit (against Huawei)," Ahn Seong-ho, head of Samsung's intellectual property division, told the Korean Herald after a meeting with the top Samsung leadership in Seoul.

The lawsuit was filed in a federal court in San Francisco as well as Shenzhen People's Court in China where Huawei is based. The Chinese company has claimed compensation in billions of dollars that it says is rightfully what Samsung should have paid it from all that they have earned using Huawei's patented technologies. The company, like in many other patent cases, has not yet sought an order to block sales of the disputed LTE-equipped Samsung devices in the US.

Although Samsung holds the numero uno position when it comes to smartphone shipments around the globe, Huawei is the top player as far as network equipment is considered despite its absence in the US market. But Samsung is only second to Huawei in this category and wants to catch up soon.

The vice president of Huawei's Strategic and External Affairs Bill Plummer had said: "As the holder of a vast portfolio of patents it is our responsibility to ensure that we are compensated for our innovation and likewise that others are compensated for theirs. That's the lifeblood of this industry; that's what drives openness and innovation."