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Ericsson HQ.

Antitrust investigation against Ericsson launched

Chinese authorities have opened an antitrust investigation into Swedish telecom giant Ericsson. Ericsson confirmed that it is being investigated by China's State Administration for Market Regulation, or SAMR, because of complaints about its intellectual property licensing practices. The company said that it is fully cooperating with the investigation and will refrain from further comment while the probe is ongoing. SAMR launched the investigation at Ericsson's Beijing office following complaints from Chinese mobile phone makers that Ericsson had violated the Anti-Monopoly Law in the 3G and 4G standard essential patents licensing market in China. Since 2011, Ericsson has earned approximately $1 billion in global patent revenue each year. It currently derives about 7 percent of its revenue from China, and is trying to boost its market share in the country.

More from CLP: PRC Bill for Amendments to the Patent Law (Draft); How a Foreign Partner Secures its IPR Transfer in China; China's Anti-monopoly Law – the First Decade in Review; The SAIC bridges IP and competition; Qualcomm and Chinese regulators settle AML charges; The SPC targets indirect patent infringers