June 12, 2023, 10:48 am | Read time: 4 minutes
Due to a licensing dispute with Nokia, OnePlus and Oppo have already withdrawn from Germany. Now, another smartphone manufacturer has followed suit and halted sales of its devices in the country.
The company in question is the Chinese manufacturer Vivo, which, like OnePlus and Oppo, is part of the BBK Electronics group. All devices have already disappeared from its website. Instead, Vivo informs that the products are unfortunately not available in Germany, and therefore no product information is available on the German site. But how did it come to this?
Overview
Licensing Dispute Forces Vivo to Halt Sales in Germany
The reason for the withdrawal from Germany is the licensing dispute with Nokia, which has been ongoing since last summer. Nokia accuses the BBK Electronics group of using protected 4G and 5G licenses without paying for them. BBK Electronics includes several well-known smartphone manufacturers such as Oppo, Realme, and OnePlus–as well as Vivo. This group of major brands made BBK Electronics the second-largest smartphone manufacturer in the world in 2020.
However, the business in Germany must now be gradually abandoned. Already in July 2022, Nokia obtained a sales ban against OnePlus and Oppo from the Munich Regional Court 1. Since last year, there have been no new OnePlus smartphones available here. In May 2023, Oppo also ceased sales entirely and cleared its German website.
Now, it affects the manufacturer Vivo, which also lost to Nokia in another lawsuit. The Mannheim Regional Court ruled in favor of the plaintiff on April 6. According to the ruling (2 O 36/22), Vivo is said to infringe on three Nokia licenses, with the previous licensing agreement having expired at the end of 2021. Therefore, smartphone sales through official channels have been temporarily halted.
On Amazon, Vivo smartphones are still sporadically available–especially the current high-end model Vivo X90 Pro. However, it is questionable how long this will remain the case. It is conceivable that Nokia could obtain an injunction to stop sales on Amazon as well.
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Can Vivo Reach an Agreement with Nokia?
Vivo does not want to give up the business in Germany just yet. The company states it is ready for negotiations. Oppo also tried for a long time to reach an agreement with Nokia to continue selling its smartphones in the country. For a long time, they remained optimistic about maintaining their business in Germany. But in May, everything changed: The website was cleared, and inquiries were no longer answered by German partners but forwarded to China.
In the case of Vivo, the situation is now similar. The German site is already empty. Unlike Oppo, however, our contacts are still available. Through them, TECHBOOK learned upon request that Vivo remains interested in reaching an agreement with Nokia, but the negotiations are difficult. “In recent years, Vivo has entered into mutual licensing agreements with numerous leading companies. We have negotiated with Nokia to renew the mutual licenses but have not yet been able to reach an agreement,” the company said in an official statement.
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Vivo accuses Nokia of not fulfilling the obligation to offer a license under “FRAND” terms (fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory). Nokia, in turn, counters that it has taken all possible steps for an out-of-court settlement. Vivo has now appealed the Mannheim ruling. “In the meantime, we remain in close contact with Nokia to conclude the licensing negotiations in accordance with FRAND terms,” Vivo told TECHBOOK.
What Does the Sales Halt Mean for Customers?
Customers who already own a Vivo smartphone are assured of full support from the manufacturer. Vivo writes on its website that customers can continue to rely on customer service and that users will also receive future software updates.
In its statement, the company also emphasizes that its long-term commitment to the German market remains unchanged. “Users can rely on customer service as well as future software updates for their devices. There is no impact on our business outside of Germany.”
In March, Vivo had just brought its latest flagship, the X90 Pro, to Germany. The device offers features such as a Zeiss camera with a 1-inch sensor and a powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip.