RIM caves to Nokia's patent demands with hopes pinned on BlackBerry 10

Struggling mobile vendors agree to patent license agreement, freeing them to get back to saving themselves

While the high-profile mobile patent bout between heavyweights Apple and Samsung likely has many more rounds to go, the undercard match between Nokia and RIM today came to an abrupt -- and arguably merciful -- conclusion: The winner is Nokia, as RIM has submitted to a patent license agreement for an undisclosed sum.

According to an announcement from Nokia, the two companies have entered an agreement that settles all existing patent litigation between the organizations and ends legal battles in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada. The financial structure of the agreement includes a one-time payment and ongoing payments, all from RIM to Nokia, according to the announcement.

Nokia filed patent claims in the United States and Germany against RIM (as well as HTC and ViewSonic) last May, alleging the companies infringed on a number of patents. The company last month also sought a ban on certain RIM products with wireless LAN capabilities.

Nokia and RIM may have settled so that they could focus their resources and efforts on their respective struggles in staying relevant in the mobile market. Nokia has seen itself lose market share as it's struggled to become a purveyor of Windows smartphones. Sales of the company's older Symbian-based phones, meanwhile, have plunged. According to a recent report from IHS, Nokia has lost the title of top phone maker to Samsung.

RIM, meanwhile, has suffered steadily plummeting sales and is pinning its very future on the success of the forthcoming BlackBerry 10. Fortunately for the company, the OS has garnered praise from developers and analysts.


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