What’s up with… Nokia & Amazon, Apple & the EC, LG Uplus & Dell

• Nokia wins a video patent court case against Amazon 
• The EC is trying to get Apple to comply with its data regulations
• South Korea’s LG Uplus praises Dell’s RAN automation tech 

In today’s industry news roundup: A Munich court has ruled that Amazon is illegally using Nokia video technology in its streaming products; Apple is under the Digital Markets Act cosh as it endures yet more European pain; Dell’s AI-enabled cloud RAN automation technology is helping LG Uplus to reduce its operating costs significantly; and more!

The Munich Regional Court in Germany has ruled in favour of Nokia in a patent dispute between the Finnish networking technology giant and Amazon. In late October 2023, Nokia commenced legal action against Amazon for the alleged unauthorised use of Nokia’s video-related technologies in the big tech firm’s streaming services and devices (for example, the Amazon Fire TV Stick). “Amazon Prime Video and Amazon’s streaming devices infringe a mix of Nokia’s multimedia patents covering multiple technologies, including video compression, content delivery, content recommendation and aspects related to hardware,” Nokia noted in this blog. In a statement emailed to the media, Arvin Patel, chief licensing officer for new segments at Nokia, noted that the Munich court “has ruled that Amazon is using Nokia’s patented video-related technologies in its end user streaming devices and is selling them illegally without a licence. The court also found that Nokia has acted fairly in its negotiations with Amazon. We hope that Amazon accepts its obligations and agrees a licence on fair terms.” As well as the legal action in Germany, Nokia also sued Amazon in the US, India, the UK, and the European Unified Patent Court – with the decisions still pending on those. Nokia also filed cases against HP in the US concerning the unlicensed use of its video technology. But Amazon hasn’t sat back while Nokia files charges: In July this year, Amazon sued Nokia in a federal court in Delaware, accusing the vendor of infringing 12 Amazon cloud computing patents. 

The European Commission (EC) is becoming a serious problem for Apple. Last week the iPhone giant lost its appeal over a €13bn tax bill and now it faces further fines if it doesn’t comply with Europe’s digital services rules. The EC has “started two specification proceedings to assist Apple in complying with its interoperability obligations under the Digital Markets Act,” the commission noted in this announcement. Under the act, Apple must “provide free and effective interoperability to third-party developers and businesses with hardware and software features controlled by Apple’s operating systems iOS and iPadOS,” effectively telling the tech giant it needs to open up what has been a very lucrative ‘walled garden’ for the company. “Today is the first time we use specification proceedings under the DMA to guide Apple towards effective compliance with its interoperability obligations through constructive dialogue,” stated outgoing EC competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager. “We are focused on ensuring fair and open digital markets. Effective interoperability, for example with smartphones and their operating systems, plays an important role in this. This process will provide clarity for developers, third parties and Apple. We will continue our dialogue with Apple and consult third parties to ensure that the proposed measures work in practice and meet the needs of businesses,” she added. The EC will now investigate Apple’s practices and provide feedback to the company over the next six months about how it can comply with Europe’s rules. You can find more background information, including some responses from Apple, in this Euractiv article.   

The use of AI in the radio access network (RAN) is a very hot topic this week – not only has there been a welter of action around Nvidia and its AI-RAN platform development and partnerships but South Korean operator LG Uplus has provided an update on its trial of AI-enabled cloud RAN automation technology with Dell Technologies. As a result of its tests, LG Uplus “confirmed that the AI-based cloud RAN automation system can improve the stability and performance of the network by utilising real-time data analysis and prediction during communications network operation,” noted the operator in this press release (in Korean). The test results “showed that the total operating cost (TCO) reduction effect was approximately 20% compared to the existing one, proving that the introduction of cloud RAN is an important technology that maximises the cost efficiency of communication network operation,” the operator added. It pointed out that the separation of hardware and software in a cloud RAN deployment makes “construction and operation” of such a network particularly difficult but that this challenge was “greatly resolved through Dell Technologies’ automation technology. Through this verification, it was confirmed that even inexperienced people can install a base station within one hour, and the function to automatically distribute applications necessary for service recovery in the event of a network failure was secured to increase work efficiency and maintain stable network quality.” The operator now plans to deploy cloud RAN technology in its commercial network while also continuing to work with Dell on the evaluation of Open RAN architecture options: That collaboration has been ongoing since last year. For more on the topic of AI’s role in the RAN, check out TelecomTV’s latest free-to-download DSP Leaders report, AI’s Impact on the Radio Access Network, and see AI’s main impact on the RAN is still to come – report.

Investments in the adoption of AI, the use of AI in business operations and by enterprises in delivering better products and services to business and consumer end users will boost the global economy by a staggering $19.9tn between now and 2030, by which time it will drive 3.5% of total global gross domestic product (GDP), according to a new forecast from research house IDC. “AI will affect jobs across every region of the world, impacting industries like contact centre operations, translation, accounting, and machinery inspection. Helping to trigger this shift are business leaders who almost unanimously [98%] view AI as a priority for their organisations,” noted IDC. “In 2024, AI entered a phase of accelerated development and deployment defined by widespread integration that’s led to a surge in enterprise investments aimed at significantly optimising operational costs and timelines,” said Lapo Fioretti, senior research analyst for emerging technologies and macroeconomics at IDC. “By automating routine tasks and unlocking new efficiencies, AI will have profound economic consequences, reshaping industries, creating new markets, and altering the competitive landscape,” he added. 

– The staff, TelecomTV