Samsung Offers to Pull Back on Gadget Ban Requests in EU

In an effort to avoid an antitrust smackdown in Europe, Samsung has proposed a moratorium on requesting injunctions against devices that use its standard essential patents (SEP).

For the next five years, Samsung would abstain from seeking bans on rivals' smartphones or tablets if the patents in question are essential to a particular industry, provided those firms agree to a particular licensing framework.

That framework includes a negotiation period of up to one year. If the two sides cannot agree on licensing terms, a court or arbitrator would have the final say. An independent trustee would help ensure Samsung is following the rules.

'Samsung has been in close discussion with Commissioner Almunia, and is supportive of the efforts to provide additional clarity on the issues raised by SEP-related cases,' a Samsung spokeswoman said today. 'Samsung is committed to fair and reasonable licensing of our technologies and believes a balanced approach to patent licensing will promote innovations to the benefit of consumers and the industry. We are confident that the proposed commitments are a constructive reflection of this.'

The EU is now requesting public comment on Samsung's proposal.

'I am looking forward to receiving the feedback of other market players on Samsung's proposals. Enforcing patents through injunctions can be perfectly legitimate,' Joaquín Almunia, Commission vice president in charge of competition policy, said in a statement. 'However, when patents are standard-essential, abuses must be prevented so that standard-setting works properly and consumers do not have to suffer negative consequences from the so-called patent wars. If we reach a good solution in this case, it will bring clarity to the industry.'

The controversy dates back to Jan. 2012, when the EU first announced that it was investigating Samsung for allegations of patent abuse. It formalized that investigation by April 2012, and by December, the EU accused Samsung of patent abuse in its dealings with Apple.

If the EU ultimately accepts Samsung's proposal, it would not conclude that Samsung had infringed on EU antitrust rules. But Samsung would be legally bound to respect the commitments it offered.

'If a company breaks such commitments, the Commission can impose a fine of up to 10 percent of the company's annual worldwide turnover without having to find an infringement of the EU antitrust rules,' the EU said.

The EU is conducting a similar investigation into Motorola. In May, the EU said that Motorola abused its dominant position by filing patent-related injunction requests against Apple. Officials informed Motorola that in its 'preliminary view,' the Google-owned company did not try to negotiate royalty payments on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) basis.

The EU is reportedly close to wrapping up the Motorola case, too, according to Bloomberg.

The EU's announcement comes shortly after the White House declined to stop an injunction against Samsung devices in the U.S. Over the summer, the administration stepped in to stop a ban on Apple products in the U.S., so Samsung requested that the White House do the same for its case. But officials concluded that the cases were different, and that Samsung did not require special treatment.