Huawei increases transparency about IP

Huawei Technologies Co disclosed on Tuesday the royalty rates for the use of its 5G technologies in smartphones, as the Chinese tech giant aims to increase transparency about its intellectual property issues.

The move came as Huawei has become one of the world's largest patent holders through sustained investment in innovation. By the end of 2020, Huawei held over 100,000 active patents in more than 40,000 patent families worldwide.

Jason Ding, head of Huawei's intellectual property rights department, said in a statement that for every phone that uses Huawei's 5G technology and is capable of working, the company will receive up to $2.50 in royalties.

Huawei estimated it will receive about $1.2 to 1.3 billion in revenue from patent licensing between 2019 and 2021.

According to Ding, Huawei has been the largest technical contributor to 5G standards, and follows fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory principles when it comes to patent licensing. He added the company hopes the royalty rate announced on Tuesday will increase 5G adoption by giving 5G implementers a more transparent cost structure that will inform their investment decisions moving forward.