Acer recently filed patent infringement lawsuits against three major U.S. telecom giants—AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon—in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. The lawsuits allege that these carriers have implemented multiple wireless communication technology patents without authorization. (Case Nos.: 2:26-cv-00025; 2:26-cv-00026; 2:26-cv-00027)

In its complaint, Acer stated it had engaged in extensive licensing negotiations with these carriers and expressed willingness to grant licenses under “fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory” (FRAND) terms. However, negotiations ultimately broke down. Acer contends that the defendants refused to negotiate in good faith and persistently infringed its patents, leaving Acer no choice but to pursue legal remedies and seek judicial adjudication. The patents in question include, but are not limited to, the following technical disclosures:

US 8,737,333: Methods and apparatus for power reporting and communication device operation

US 9,526,04: Communication device method for measuring gap configuration processing

US 9,999,097: Method for Establishing a Wireless Bearer in a Dual-Connection Environment

US 10,237,791: Method for Updating Network Detection and Selection Information and Traffic Routing Information

US 11,044,053: Communication Operation Device and Method Based on Code Block Groups

US 11,252,641: Method for Transmitting and Acquiring System Information

Notably, these three major carriers are key customers of Nokia. Consequently, industry analysts suggest Acer's actions may not solely target AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon themselves. Rather, suing these carriers could represent a counter-pressure tactic against Nokia's earlier global patent lawsuits filed against Acer and other companies.

Case Background

Nokia's global patent litigation against Acer, Asus, and Hisense commenced in April 2025 and has since spread across multiple countries.

In early April 2025, Nokia first sued Acer and Asus in Germany and the Unified Patent Court (UPC), alleging infringement of video coding patents in their computers and smart TVs;

On April 11, 2025, the battle expanded to the United States. Nokia filed lawsuits against Acer and others in multiple federal district courts and petitioned the U.S. International Trade Commission for a Section 337 investigation, seeking import bans.

On June 13, 2025, litigation extended to India, where Nokia sued Hisense and Acer in the Delhi High Court, later adding Asus.

In retaliation, Acer and Hisense sued Nokia in the UK High Court in June, followed by Asus in July;

November 7, 2025: Acer filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Nokia in Munich Regional Court, alleging infringement of its standard-essential patent for 4G technology (EP 2 451 225);

On December 18, 2025, the UK High Court granted Acer, Asus, and Hisense a provisional license, ordering them to pay Nokia $0.365 per device sold. This amount exceeded Acer and Asus's initial proposal of $0.03 but fell below Nokia's original demand of $0.69. Nokia stated it would appeal the ruling;

On January 8, 2026, Hisense formally reached a multi-year patent licensing agreement with Nokia, concluding all litigation worldwide.