Nokia loses patent case against IPCom in Germany

Nokia, the once-dominant mobile handset maker, yesterday lost a patent case after a German court ruled that the Finland-based company had infringed patents belonging to German patent firm IPCom.

A regional court in Mannheim, Germany, found that several of Nokia handsets have infringed on a patent related to emergency services access that belongs to Pullach, Germany-based IPCom. 

But Nokia appears to have got away with the infringement since the patents in question were granted in February 2011 and none of the handsets involved in this patent infringement are in the market.

"We respectfully disagree with this decision, but almost all of these phones pre-dated the grant of the patent in February 2011 and our products today use different methods," Mark Durrant, a Nokia spokesman told ZDNet UK.

"The judgment does not rule whether Nokia's current mobile devices infringe the patent," and Nokia would ask a higher regional court to clarify the ruling, he added.

IPCom, which had acquired a portfolio of patents from mobile technology pioneer Bosch in 2007, has filed several patent infringement cases against Nokia.But several courts in the UK and Germany have some of its patents invalid.

"So far, 61 IPCom patents have been found invalid as granted or conceded as invalid by IPCom," Durrant said. "Nokia believes that IPCom needs to recognise its position and end its unrealistic demands for what remains of this significantly diminished portfolio.''