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A patent dispute has dealt a blow to Xiaomi’s international expansion, leaving the fast-growing Chinese smartphone maker facing a temporary ban on sales in India and further pressure on margins.
一场专利纠纷给小米(Xiaomi)的国际扩张造成打击，这家发展迅速的中国智能手机制造商在印度遭遇暂时禁售，利润率面临更大压力。
Xiaomi, anointed a valuation in excess of $40bn at its latest fundraising in November, is keen to replicate its popularity in China into other major emerging markets. In April it unveiled plans to expand into as many as 10 foreign markets.
小米希望将其在中国的受欢迎程度复制到其他主要新兴市场。在11月的最新一轮融资中，小米估值超过400亿美元。今年4月，该公司宣布了进军10个国外市场的计划。
However, a Delhi High Court case suggests that this march abroad may also open it to more patent disputes, with companies demanding it pay royalties — something that rivals are less keen to pursue in China where claims are harder to press. Such payments would, in turn, eat into margins or drive up handset prices. In a ruling on a patent dispute with technology group Ericsson, the court ordered Xiaomi to suspend sales until February, pending a further hearing relating to its dispute with the Swedish company.
然而，印度案件预示着小米在进军海外路上可能还会遭遇更多专利纠纷，拥有专利的企业将要求其支付许可费——竞争对手不太愿意在中国起诉，因为在中国索赔会比较困难。这些支出将进而侵蚀利润率或推升手机价格。在一项有关小米与瑞典科技企业爱立信(Ericsson)专利纠纷的裁决中，德里高等法院下令小米在明年2月前暂停销售，等待有关其与爱立信诉讼的进一步审理结果。
Wednesday’s ruling stated that Xiaomi was “restrained from manufacturing, assembling, importing, selling or advertising” its products in India pending a further hearing, while India’s customs authorities were “directed not to allow the import” of mobiles and other products that may infringe Ericsson’s patents.
周三的裁决称，小米被“禁止”在印度“制造、组装、进口、销售或宣传”其产品，需等待进一步审理结果，同时印度海关被“指示不要放行”可能侵犯爱立信专利的手机和其他产品的“进口”。
Without a trove of its own patents, manufacturers such as Xiaomi could ultimately see their costs inflated by 5-20 per cent due to licensing fees, according to some experts. Xiaomi says it acquired 1,141 patents last year, a number considered unimpressive in the tech industry.
一些专家表示，在缺少自主专利的情况下，小米等制造商的成本最终可能会因为许可费而上升5%至20%。小米表示，去年该公司获得1141项专利，在科技行业，这一数字并不起眼。
Experts said this appeared to be the first patent litigation targeting Xiaomi since it outlined plans to launch into up to 10 foreign markets.
专家们表示，这似乎是小米宣布计划进军10个国外市场以来，首例针对该公司的专利诉讼。
“It looks like Xiaomi is experiencing a bit of culture shock in India,” said Wang Yanhui, secretary-general of the Mobile Phone China Alliance, an industry lobbying group. He said Xiaomi was not the first Chinese smartphone maker to be sued in India, however, it was the first time imports had been halted.
行业游说组织——手机中国联盟(Mobile Phone China Alliance)秘书长王艳辉表示：“看来小米正在印度遭遇文化冲击。”他表示，小米并非唯一一家在印度被起诉的中国智能手机制造商，但它是首个被暂停进口的中国企业。
The Delhi court ruling is likely to raise new concerns about possible intellectual property challenges affecting other Chinese smartphone and device makers — a group that includes Huawei, ZTE and Lenovo, analysts said.
分析人士称，德里高等法院的这项裁决，可能会重新引起外界对其他中国智能手机和设备制造商面临潜在知识产权挑战的担忧，其中包括华为(Huawei)、中兴(ZTE)和联想(Lenovo)。
Manu Jain, head of Xiaomi in India, said the group had not received official notification of the ruling from the court, but that its legal team was “evaluating the situation”.
小米印度分公司负责人马努•贾因(Manu Jain)表示，小米尚未接到法院方面关于裁决的正式通知，但公司法律团队正“对目前的形势进行评估”。
