Nokia and Apple end their patent fight and become health allies
Nokia's products will also be re-stocked in Apple Stores.
Over recent months, Apple has been embroiled lawsuits related to patent licensing. While its fight with Qualcomm continues to rumble on, the company confirmed today that it's resolved one of its major disputes by signing a multi-year agreement with Nokia to utilize its intellectual property.
At the end of last year, Nokia sued Apple for declining to license patents related to technologies used in devices such as the iPhone and iPad. Apple had an agreement for some Nokia technologies, but had withheld offers on 32 other patents that covered everything from the display and UI to chipsets and video encoding.
Under the new agreement, Nokia will provide "network infrastructure products and services" to Apple. Apple, on the other hand, will resume stocking Nokia products -- those formerly belonging to the Withings brand -- in its retail and online stores. There's even talk of both companies working together on future "digital health initiatives."
"This is a meaningful agreement between Nokia and Apple," said 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."
