Netgear sues Huawei in US antitrust case over patent licensing

Computer networking company Netgear has sued Huawei in California federal court, claiming the Chinese tech giant broke U.S. antitrust law by refusing to license its patents on reasonable terms.

The complaint, filed late on Tuesday, also accused Huawei of fraud, racketeering and other offenses for allegedly withholding patent licenses for technology that Netgear’s routers require in order to comply with international Wi-Fi networking standards.

San Jose, California-based Netgear said Huawei misuses patent-infringement lawsuits to drive up its licensing rates, forcing other companies to “engage in costly litigation and face exclusion from the market or pay Huawei’s exorbitant demands.”