Nokia Signs Multi-Year Patent License Pact With Huawei

Nokia Corp. (NOK) has signed a multi-year patent license agreement with China's Huawei Technologies Co., it said Thursday.

Details of the deal are confidential but Nokia will disclose its total patent licensing revenue in its quarterly financial reports, it said.

Revenue from the agreement will begin to be recognized in the fourth quarter of 2017, including an element of non-recurring catchup revenue, with additional revenues expected during the term of the agreement.

Nokia earned 474 million euros ($562 million) from sales of its patents and brand licensing in the third quarter of 2017, representing around 8.6% of total group sales.

Revenue from its licensing business has played an increasingly important role for Nokia, helping offset sales declines in the highly competitive networks business.

In its most recent quarterly report, Chief Executive Rajeev Suri said licensing is a focus for the company as it enjoys excellent momentum and has considerable opportunities to further develop in 2018 and beyond.

Huawei had a 9.5% share of the global smartphone market in the third quarter of this year, according to the latest data available from research firm Gartner. Only Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (005930.SE) and Apple Inc. (APPL) have a higher share.

Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com; Twitter: @domchopping @WSJNordics

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 21, 2017 03:43 ET (08:43 GMT)