Carrier files suit alleging that the Chinese vendor and former T-Mobile supplier stole technology from smartphone testing robot in its headquarters.

Sarah Thomas, Director, Women in Comms

September 9, 2014

2 Min Read
T-Mobile Accuses Huawei of Espionage

Huawei has found itself in trouble in the US again, this time as the subject in a lawsuit from T-Mobile, which alleges the Chinese vendor stole technology from its Bellevue, Wash., headquarters.

T-Mobile US Inc. filed suit against Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. last week in Seattle, claiming that its employees snuck into a T-Mobile lab in the 2012-2013 time frame and stole parts of its smartphone testing robot Tappy. [Ed. Note: Wouldn't that be kidnapping?]

The employees then copied operating software and design details, violating confidentiality agreements that both companies signed, T-Mobile alleges of its former supplier. And, it says, Huawei is now using that intel to build its own testing robot.

Want to know more about mobile technologies in the telecom industry? Check out Light Reading's dedicated mobile content channel.

A Huawei spokesman tells the New York Times that there is some truth to the complaint, but that the two employees involved have been fired. T-Mobile has since stopped working with Huawei, which T-Mobile says could cost it tens of millions of dollars as it moves away from its handsets.

This isn't the first time Huawei has come under fire in the US for unethical practices, and it's certainly not the first time companies have warred over intellectual property. (See Huawei Names US Lead, Reminds Us It's Still Here and NSA Reportedly Spying on Huawei: What's Chinese for 'Ironic'? )

For more on past legal scuffles, here is just a sampling of Light Reading's past coverage:

— Sarah Reedy, Senior Editor, Light Reading

About the Author(s)

Sarah Thomas

Director, Women in Comms

Sarah Thomas's love affair with communications began in 2003 when she bought her first cellphone, a pink RAZR, which she duly "bedazzled" with the help of superglue and her dad.

She joined the editorial staff at Light Reading in 2010 and has been covering mobile technologies ever since. Sarah got her start covering telecom in 2007 at Telephony, later Connected Planet, may it rest in peace. Her non-telecom work experience includes a brief foray into public relations at Fleishman-Hillard (her cussin' upset the clients) and a hodge-podge of internships, including spells at Ingram's (Kansas City's business magazine), American Spa magazine (where she was Chief Hot-Tub Correspondent), and the tweens' quiz bible, QuizFest, in NYC.

As Editorial Operations Director, a role she took on in January 2015, Sarah is responsible for the day-to-day management of the non-news content elements on Light Reading.

Sarah received her Bachelor's in Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She lives in Chicago with her 3DTV, her iPad and a drawer full of smartphone cords.

Away from the world of telecom journalism, Sarah likes to dabble in monster truck racing, becoming part of Team Bigfoot in 2009.

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