Chinese Xiaomi copycat hit with patent infringement lawsuits, sales bans
“Xiaomi Corp. became the biggest smartphone seller in China without an extensive — or expensive — collection of patents. That low-cost approach is now backfiring as accusations of technology infringement stall its global push,” Bloomberg News reports. “Ericsson AB sued Xiaomi in India, saying the smartphone maker hadn’t licensed inventions by Ericsson that enable wireless devices to connect to networks. Judges banned some Xiaomi devices in the company’s biggest overseas market, pending another hearing next month.”
“The lawsuit threatens founder Lei Jun’s drive to boost next year’s shipments to 100 million units, a fivefold gain from 2013, with an eye toward overtaking Samsung Electronics Co. and Apple Inc globally. It also puts Xiaomi’s strategy of selling devices for near-cost at risk as the Beijing-based company increases spending on research and licensing to avoid the legal battles Samsung and Apple fought around the world,” Bloomberg reports. “‘The nightmare will keep on going,’ said Neil Shah, Mumbai-based research director for devices at Counterpoint Research. ‘Patent companies in other countries will now go after Xiaomi in other markets and use the India market as the example.'”
“Low research costs helped Xiaomi go from startup to the world’s No. 3 smartphone vendor within four years of its founding. Virtually all those sales were in China, where weak enforcement of intellectual-property rights meant Xiaomi was ‘much more protected,’ Shah said,” Bloomberg reports. “To overtake Samsung and Apple, Xiaomi needs to enter markets with stringent rights enforcement that may embroil Xiaomi in more disputes, Shah said. ‘Expansion into countries with strict intellectual property laws, such as the U.S. or Japan, has long been a challenge for most Chinese smartphone brands, including Xiaomi,’ said Neil Mawston, executive director of researcher Strategy Analytics. ‘Xiaomi will find its rapid smartphone growth at home in China is much harder to replicate abroad.'”
MacDailyNews Take: Hey, maybe the blatant patent and trade dress infringers can make it up in volume? (smirk)
Xiaomi’s knockoff parade:
Xiaomi’s MIUI 6 Android skin mimics Apple’s iOS 7One more thing… Apple CEO Steve Jobs (left), Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun (right)Xiaomi M4 (left), Apple iPhone 5s (right)Xiaomi MiPad
