Telecom Lead Asia: Ericsson, Nokia, InterDigital, and
Qualcomm will retain their LTE 4G patent position.
LTE smartphones will top 65 million units in 2012, led by
the anticipated LTE-enabled iPhone 5 and Samsung’s LTE smartphones, according
to ABI Research.
Top 5 essential and highly novel LTE 4G patent holders
According to a report by Article One Partners (AOP), a
patent research community, with Thomson Reuters, Nokia, Qualcomm, Samsung,
Ericsson and LG are the top 5 essential and highly novel LTE 4G patent holders.
The ranking is significant as companies use patents as a way to differentiate
from the competition and lead their industry. Patents protect a company’s
intellectual property and allow it to foster innovation. Companies use patents
as a way to lead their industry and differentiate from the competition.
ABI Research said Samsung’s strength in LTE patents will
suit it well as one of the strongest LTE handset vendors.
Mobile wireless royalties for GSM, WCDMA, and LTE
smartphones were under $20 billion in 2011 but the increase to 65 million LTE
smartphones will help push the 2012 royalty total higher.
Even though LTE handsets will only total 4 percent of
the total handsets shipped in 2012, total royalty rates will be 14 percent
higher,” said ABI Research director Philip Solis.
Though some 2G royalties are expiring, the growing base
of 3G handsets and acceleration of LTE handsets – with combined royalties for
2G, 3G, and 4G patents – will keep mobile wireless royalties growing.
Over the last several years, annual handset shipments
have gone from hundreds of millions to more than a billion, while the market
has shifted toward 3G handsets.
Companies like Motorola are in a good position with
strong patent portfolios for GSM and WCDMA. That power will shift over the next
five years to companies with 4G positions, including Samsung and Panasonic.
The participation of Chinese companies in patent filing
and participation in standardization is also a notable trend. Huawei and ZTE,
among other Chinese companies, are very cognizant of the importance of 4G
patents. Chinese companies, as well Japanese and South Korean companies, will
shift some of the patent power from Europe and the US to the Asia-Pacific.
