The European Commission said Motorola has inappropriately taken advantage of its power by filing injunction requests against Apple, according to PCMag.com.
On Monday, the EU said its “preliminary view” found Motorola to not have made an attempt to negotiate royalty payments on a FRAND—fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory—basis. The EU has issued a statement of objection to the Google-owned company.
FRAND licensing obligations are put in place to create fair competition. If a company has a patent on a certain technology that another company absolutely needs, the company with the patent must try—in every possible way—to license the technology.
If the commission reviews the evidence and finds fault with Motorola’s actions, the company could face a fine of up to 10 percent of its annual worldwide turnover. The company currently has the opportunity to respond to the statement of objection and ask for a hearing.
In a statement released by the EU, the Commission Vice President in charge of competition policy, Joaquín Almunia said:
"The protection of intellectual property is a cornerstone of innovation and growth. But so is competition. I think that companies should spend their time innovating and competing on the merits of the products they offer – not misusing their intellectual property rights to hold up competitors to the detriment of innovation and consumer choice."
Approximately one year ago, the EU began looking into patent abuse by Motorola. Apple and Microsoft accused the company of suing over “essential” patents instead of trying to hash out proper licensing deals.
Motorola was investigated for its attempts at causing devices such as the iPhone and iPad—and its bout with Microsoft over the Xbox—to be taken out of stores. The EU was looking to see if the Motorola had “failed to honor its irrevocable commitments made to standard setting organizations," through its lawsuits over patents.
Motorola says it has offered reasonable royalty payments, however Apple and Microsoft disagree.
Even thought Motorola did not respond to comment, last year it said it was "confident that a thorough investigation will demonstrate that it has honored its FRAND obligations and complied with antitrust laws. MMI will continue to work closely with the European Commission to resolve this matter as soon as practicable."
