Judge takes Qualcomm's side in patent spat with Nokia

Qualcomm scored a minor victory in its continuing spat with Nokia when a judge last week recommended ending the investigation Nokia bought against it in August for infringing patents.

In August, Nokia asked the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) to ban the import of Qualcomm chipsets used in cellphones, including 3G (third-generation handsets), for allegedly infringing on five patents held by Nokia.

ITC Administrative Law Judge Paul Luckern [CQ] granted Qualcomm a motion to terminate the investigation, as the companies are already in arbitration to settle a dispute behind a technology license the two companies signed earlier. If the decision stands after a 30-day review, Qualcomm won't be prevented from importing its chipsets into the U.S.

Nokia originally requested ITC to initiate an investigation against Qualcomm for infringing patents and issue an exclusion order to bar the import of infringing Qualcomm chipsets into the U.S.

For two years now, the spat between the two companies over patent licensing has led to several lawsuits.

Last year, Qualcomm filed a complaint with the ITC against Nokia over GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication) patents.

The ITC is already investigating Nokia after InterDigital Inc. complained that Nokia infringed two of its 3G wireless technology patents. The commission also banned some Qualcomm imports in June, after complaints from Broadcom for patent infringement.