Tech giants Apple and Nokia have proven once again that in business, there are no permanent friends or enemies, only permanent interests. The two companies, known for their extended patent disputes and public mudslinging suddenly patched things up and entered into a new licensing agreement.
According to reports, Apple will resume selling Nokia’s health products formerly sold under the brand Whitings. Recall that shortly after Nokia sued Apple for patent infringement in December 2016, the former took Whitings products off its virtual shelves.
The bold mobile and tech innovators have yet to disclose full details of their new licensing agreement. However, it has been reported that Nokia will be receiving hefty sums from Apple, plus additional revenue. Apart from the multi-year business collaboration agreement, the companies announced that they are “exploring future collaboration in digital health initiatives”.
Maria Varsellona, Chief Legal Officer at Nokia: “It moves our relationship with Apple from being adversaries in court to business partners working for the benefit of our customers.”
Truce Ends Patent Battle Between Apple and Nokia
The two companies started their series of patent disputes in 2009; Nokia slapped Apple technologies with lawsuits in the US and Germany over 32 patent infringement cases. The partnership paved the way for the settlement of all these cases.
It moves our relationship with Apple from being adversaries in court to business partners working for the benefit of our customers.
Under the new partnership, Nokia will provide network infrastructure products and services to Apple. The two have even agreed on regular summits between Nokia and Apple top executives.
“We are pleased with this resolution of our dispute and we look forward to expanding our business relationship with Nokia,” said Jeff Williams, Apple’s chief operating officer.
The up-front cash payment from Apple will positively affect Nokia’s ledgers. The latter will provide a comprehensive update of its capital structure optimization program in time for its Q3 2017 figures.
