Indian court bans Xiaomi phone sales over patent infringement

A judge has banned Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi from selling its devices in India. It is the first time that the now large Chinese smartphone maker has to deal with the consequences of a patent case.

The ruling concerns a so-called ex parte decision, in which the judge pronounces a provisional decision without the other party, in this case Xiaomi, having been heard. The charge comes from Ericsson. The network company claims that phones from the Chinese manufacturer uses patents that Ericsson has in the field of GSM and 3G. Court officials are said to have been ordered to visit Xiaomi offices to ensure that Xiaomi is indeed no longer selling devices, Spicy IP writes.

It is the first time that Xiaomi has to deal with the consequences of a patent case. Xiaomi is now one of the largest smartphone makers in the world, but until six months ago it operated almost exclusively in its home country of China, where patent legislation is more flexible. In July, Xiaomi started selling phones in India.

It is unknown which devices are involved, but Xiaomi only sells the Mi 3, Mi 4 and Redmi Note in India. Ericsson has not only a case against Xiaomi in India, it also has charges against, among others, Gionee and Micromax. Many such cases fizzle out because the companies conclude a licensing deal. Xiaomi tells Techcrunch that it wants to talk to Ericsson about closing such a license deal.