Nokia Patent Fight Halts Acer, Asus in Germany

Acer and Asus are currently experiencing significant legal challenges in Germany stemming from a patent dispute with Nokia over HEVC video compression technology. German courts have sided with Nokia, leading to a halt in sales for Acer and Asus laptops within the country.

Compounding the issue, the official German websites for both Acer and Asus have become inaccessible. This development critically impacts the ability of German consumers to access support for their existing devices, including driver downloads or updates.

While Asus has stated that existing customers would receive uninterrupted support, reports indicate that accessing their German support portal, and even international sites via redirection, is now impossible from Germany. Users have explored workarounds like VPNs or accessing regional sites such as the Chinese Asus or Taiwanese Acer websites.

This situation, described as a "tire fire of monstrous proportions" on Reddit, is frustrating for German consumers who find themselves unable to access services for which they have already paid. The broad interpretation of the court's injunction, affecting support alongside sales, is a point of concern, potentially setting a worrying precedent for consumer rights regarding product support.