Nokia’s patents chief gets pushback in bid to make firms pay

A file photo of Nokia's mobile phones in Barcelona, on the opening day of the 2012 Mobile World Congress. At Nokia, licensing has grown more important over the past decade since it stopped making phones and focused on networking gear and intellectual property. — AFP

Nokia Oyj, moving to expand its profitable licensing business beyond smartphone makers, is learning that its old ways of negotiating may not always work.

Having recently tussled with automakers to make them pay for its inventions used in connected vehicles, Nokia is now preparing for talks with the makers of other connected devices. These gadgets, which are expected to proliferate with 5G technology, will let consumers turn on the dishwasher from their morning commute and farmers monitor crops, livestock and equipment from their phone. In doing so, they’ll use cellular connectivity technology that Nokia helped pioneer and continues to invest in.