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Global smartphone makers OPPO and its subsidiary OnePlus have stopped sales of smartphones and smartwatches in Germany after they lost a patent lawsuit against Finnish telecom player Nokia.

Nokia had accused the companies of using its patented technology for processing 4G and 5G signals without paying for a license.

Nokia won an injunction to halt sales in a German court last week.

The companies told The Verge on Tuesday that that the company halted sales in Germany, blaming "Nokia's demand for an unreasonably high fee" for patents as the reason for the lawsuit.

"We are actively working with the relevant parties to resolve the ongoing legal matter," a OnePlus spokesperson said in a statement.

"OnePlus remains committed to the German market and will continue our operations. Meanwhile, OnePlus users in Germany can continue to enjoy our products and related services such as regular software updates and our after-sales service as before," the spokesperson said.

An OPPO spokesperson told European patent news site JUVE Patent that as the owner of many 5G patents, "OPPO respects the value of intellectual property in innovation to a particularly high degree".

"The day after the 4G agreement between OPPO and Nokia expired, Nokia immediately went to court. They had previously demanded an unreasonably high contract renewal fee," the company spokesperson added.

The Europe smartphone market declined by 11 per cent (on-year) and 13 per cent (on-quarter) to 40 million units in Q2 this year, the lowest since Q2 2020.

Xiaomi and OPPO, hit by China lockdowns, suffered double digit YoY declines in their respective shipments, according to Counterpoint Research.

realme continued its European expansion with double digit YoY shipment growth in Q2.