LG licenses Wi-Fi patents to Amazon for AI speakers

LG Electronics has signed a licensing agreement with Amazon, allowing the US firm to use LG’s Wi-Fi standard-essential patents for its Alexa AI speakers and other services.

LG, a South Korean tech company, said it is also in talks with other global firms to license its Wi-Fi-related patents.

The company held 97,880 patents worldwide as of June, about half of which are standard-essential patents.

LG plans to keep securing patents in areas such as AI, quantum computing, and 6G networks.

🔗 Source: Yonhap

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

LG ranks top four in Wi‑Fi patents

NGB (an intellectual property analytics firm) essentiality analysis on April 1, 2021 ranks LG fourth behind Qualcomm, Huawei, and Intel with 93 Wi‑Fi 6 standard‑essential patent families 1.
That rank gives LG leverage with device makers because the top four hold about 68% of Wi‑Fi 6 SEP families in NGB’s top‑20‑contributors dataset 1.
LG struck a deal with Wilus, a South Korean wireless technology R&D/licensing company to access Wi‑Fi 6 SEPs offered on fair, reasonable and non‑discriminatory (FRAND) terms while building its licensing program 2.
An Amazon deal signals a wider push, and LG says it is talking with other firms to license its Wi‑Fi patents.

Smart home and IoT makers face Wi‑Fi licensing exposure

Smart home device shipments reach 931 million in 2025 and rise to 1.1 billion by 2028 at a 5.6% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) 3. Home monitoring and security gear makes up over 27% of volume 3.
Wi‑Fi makes up 32% of IoT connections in 2025, the largest connectivity technology, with 21.1 billion IoT devices forecast for 2025 4.
Only 19 companies submitted Wi‑Fi 6 letters of assurance (commitments at standards bodies to license standard‑essential patents on FRAND terms) and one disclosed patent numbers 5.
IP risk consultants (advisers who assess patent exposure) plus module vendors (suppliers of pre‑certified wireless components) that offer FRAND‑compliant solutions can target security cameras and smart vacuums from Chinese brands Roborock, Dreame 3. Video doorbells were expected to reach $1.4 billion in 2023 spending 6.