Since Ericsson requested a ban of all sales of Samsung's controversial products in the U.S., the Korean manufacturer has now required the same for Ericsson products. The Swedish manufacturer apparently infringes seven of Samsung's patents and a ban is being requested on imports and the sales of telecommunication equipment such as base stations. Samsung said that they were looking for the two companies to negotiate "in good faith", but Ericsson did not want to negotiate, and continued with their "unreasonable" demands.

Ericsson has recently recorded a decline in sales in the third quarter; there was a 17 percent decline in revenues over the previous year. The company owns a number of patents related to wireless technology, which is widely used in tablets and smartphones, and Ericsson sees the explosive growth in sales of these devices as an opportunity for profit.

[Ed – the move by Ericsson is not surprising, but it is a little risky to try the full law suit route. They could have negotiated a better deal and a possible partnership with Samsung. Instead it seems that everyone is walking away from partnerships with Ericsson. If things go bad for Ericsson we could see another player in the mobile market disappear and their patent portfolio up for grabs to the highest bidder…]

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