1:40 PM -- Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. managed to take the current round of patent lawsuits to a new level Thursday by filing lawsuits against its Chinese rival and neighbor ZTE Corp. (Shenzhen: 000063; Hong Kong: 0763)

The actions, taken through a number of separate European courts, relate to Long Term Evolution (LTE) and data card patents as well as the allegedly illegal use of a Huawei trademark.

An "astonished" ZTE, already on the sharp end of recent legal suit issued by Ericsson AB (Nasdaq: ERIC), rejected Huawei's claims, saying it would defend itself vigorously. (See Huawei Sets Lawyers on ZTE, ZTE Denies Huawei Patent Theft Allegations and Ericsson Sues ZTE Over IPR Theft.)

No doubt there will be those in the industry who will enjoy a touch of schadenfreude (laced with a sprinkle of irony) at the news that the two largest Chinese vendors are now embroiled in a dispute concerning the alleged illegal use of patented technology, given the accusations that have been leveled at the Chinese vendor community in the past. (See MWC 2011: NSN Chases 'Spy' off Stand.)

The main concern, though, is that, given the growing number of intellectual property lawsuits being issued currently, the industry may get embroiled in a spiraling volume of legal actions that could drain resources and impact R&D.

I mean, just check out the recent legal mudslinging!! When will it end?

— Ray Le Maistre, International Managing Editor, Light Reading