1

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS

WACO DIVISION

WSOU INVESTMENTS, LLC d/b/a 

BRAZOS LICENSING AND 

DEVELOPMENT,

Plaintiff,

v.

HUAWEI INVESTMENT & HOLDING 

CO., LTD., HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES 

CO., LTD., HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES 

USA INC., HUAWEI DEVICE CO. LTD. 

(f/k/a HUAWEI DEVICE (DONGGUAN) 

CO.), HUAWEI DEVICE (SHENZHEN) 

CO., LTD. (f/k/a HUAWEI DEVICE CO., 

LTD.), HUAWEI DEVICE USA, INC.

Defendants.

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

§

CIVIL ACTION NO. 6:20-cv-209

JURY TRIAL DEMANDED

ORIGINAL COMPLAINT FOR PATENT 

INFRINGEMENT

Plaintiff WSOU Investments, LLC d/b/a Brazos Licensing and Development

(“Brazos” or “Plaintiff”), by and through its attorneys, files this Complaint for Patent 

Infringement against Defendants Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd., Huawei 

Technologies Co., Ltd., Huawei Technologies USA Inc., Huawei Device Co. Ltd. (f/k/a 

Huawei Device (Dongguan) Co.), Huawei Device (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd. (f/k/a Huawei Device 

Co., Ltd.), and Huawei Device USA, Inc. (collectively “Huawei” or “Defendants”) and 

alleges:

NATURE OF THE ACTION

1. This is a civil action for patent infringement arising under the Patent Laws 

of the United States, 35 U.S.C. §§ 1, et seq., including §§ 271, 281, 284, and 285.

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 1 of 12
2

THE PARTIES

2. Brazos is a limited liability corporation organized and existing under the laws 

of Delaware, with its principal place of business at 605 Austin Ave, Ste 6, Waco, TX 76701.

3. On information and belief, Defendant Huawei Investment & Holding Co., 

Ltd. is a Chinese corporation that does business in Texas, directly or through intermediaries,

with a principal place of business at Bantian, Longgang District, Shenzhen, 518129, 

People’s Republic of China.

4. On information and belief, Defendant Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. is a 

Chinese corporation that does business in Texas, directly or through intermediaries, with a 

principal place of business at Bantian, Longgang District, Shenzhen 518129, People’s 

Republic of China.

5. Upon information and belief, Defendant Huawei Technologies USA Inc. is a 

corporation organized and existing under the laws of Texas that maintains an established 

place of business at 2391 NE Interstate 410 Loop, San Antonio, TX 78217. Huawei 

Technologies USA, Inc. is authorized to do business in Texas and may be served via its 

registered agent, CT Corporation System, 1999 Bryan Street, Suite 900, Dallas, Texas 

75201-3136.

6. Upon information and belief, Defendant Huawei Device Co. Ltd. (formerly 

known as Huawei Device (Dongguan) Co.) is a Chinese corporation that does business in 

Texas, directly or through intermediaries, and maintains a principal place of business in No.2 

of Xincheng Road, Songshan Lake Zone, Dongguan, Guangdong 523808, People’s 

Republic of China.

7. Upon information and belief, Huawei Device (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd. (formerly 

known as Huawei Device Co., Ltd.) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Defendant Huawei 

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 2 of 12
3

Device Co. Ltd. is a Chinese corporation that does business in Texas, directly or through 

intermediaries, and maintains a principal place of business in Bantian, Longgang District, 

Shenzhen 518129, People’s Republic of China.

8. On information and belief, Defendant Huawei Device USA, Inc., is a Texas

corporation with a principal place of business located at 5700 Tennyson Parkway, Suite 600,

Plano, Texas 75024. Huawei Device USA, Inc. is authorized to do business in Texas and 

may be served via its registered agent, CT Corporation System, 1999 Bryan Street, Suite 

900, Dallas, Texas 75201-3136.

9. All of the Defendants operate under and identify with the trade name 

“Huawei.” Each of the Defendants may be referred to individually as a “Huawei Defendant” 

and, collectively, Defendants may be referred to below as “Huawei” or as the “Huawei 

Defendants.” Upon information and belief, Defendant Huawei Investment & Holding Co., 

Ltd. provides consolidated financial reporting for Huawei entities, including all Huawei 

Defendants.

JURISDICTION AND VENUE

10. This is an action for patent infringement which arises under the Patent Laws 

of the United States, in particular, 35 U.S.C. §§271, 281, 284, and 285.

11. This Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter of this action under 28 

U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1338(a).

12. This Court has specific and general personal jurisdiction over each Huawei

Defendant pursuant to due process and/or the Texas Long Arm Statute, because each Huawei 

Defendant has committed acts giving rise to this action within Texas and within this judicial 

district. The Court’s exercise of jurisdiction over each Huawei Defendant would not offend 

traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice because Huawei has established 

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 3 of 12
4

minimum contacts with the forum. For example, on information and belief, Huawei

Defendants have committed acts of infringement in this judicial district, by among other 

things, selling and offering for sale products that infringe the asserted patent, directly or 

through intermediaries, as alleged herein.

13. Venue in the Western District of Texas is proper pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 

§§1391 and 1400(b) because Huawei Technologies USA Inc. and Huawei Device USA Inc. 

have committed acts of infringement in this judicial district and have a regular and 

established places of business in this judicial district and in Texas. As non-limiting 

examples, on information and belief, Huawei Technologies USA Inc. and Huawei Device 

USA Inc. have sold or offered to sell the Accused Products in this judicial district and have 

employees or agents that operate Huawei equipment in this judicial district, including at

189 CR 265, Georgetown, TX 78626, 1150 S Bell Blvd, Cedar Park, TX 78613, 1399 S A 

W Grimes Blvd, Round Rock, TX 78664, 12335 IH 35, Jarrell, TX 76537, 1050 Rabbit Hill 

Rd, Unit #E, Georgetown, TX 78626, 1602 A W Grimes Blvd, Round Rock, TX 78664, 

4120 IH 35 N, Georgetown, TX 78626, 900 CR 272, Leander, TX 78641, 1950 Crystal 

Falls Pkwy, Leander, TX 78641, 1101 N Industrial Blvd, Round Rock, TX 78681, 506 

McNeil Rd, Round Rock, TX 78681, 3210 Chisholm Trail Rd, Round Rock, TX 78681, 

112 Roundville Ln, Round Rock, TX 78664, 202 Central Dr W, Georgetown, TX 78628, 

3595 E Hwy 29, Georgetown, TX 78626, 1402 W Welch St, Taylor, TX 76574, 3801 Oak 

Ridge Dr, Round Rock, TX 78681, 1957 Red Bud Ln #B, Round Rock, TX 78664, 6603 S 

Lakewood Dr, Georgetown, TX 78633, 500 W Front, Hutto, TX 78634.

COUNT ONE - INFRINGEMENT OF 

U.S. PATENT NO. 8,249,446

14. Brazos re-alleges and incorporates by reference the preceding paragraphs 

of this Complaint.

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 4 of 12
5

15. On August 21, 2012, the United States Patent and Trademark Office duly 

and legally issued U.S. Patent No. 8,249,446 (“the ’446 Patent”), entitled “METHOD AND 

APPARATUS FOR REGULATING ROGUE BEHAVOR IN OPTICAL NETWORK 

TRANSMISSION DEVICES.” A true and correct copy of the ’446 Patent is attached as 

Exhibit A to this Complaint.

16. Brazos is the owner of all rights, title, and interest in and to the ’446 Patent, 

including the right to assert all causes of action arising under the ’446 Patent and the right 

to any remedies for the infringement of the ’446 Patent.

17. Huawei makes, uses, sells, offers for sale, imports, and/or distributes in the 

United States, including within this judicial district, products such as, but not limited to,

Huawei multi-service access module which can be used as a large capacity GPON 

(collectively, the “Accused Products”). 

18. The Accused Products include the Huawei SmartAX MA5600T.

19. Huawei provides access to network solutions to its customers. Huawei 

SmartAX MA5600T is a multi-service access module that can be used as a large capacity 

GPON. 

https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/access-network/smartax-ma5600t-pid-18133

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 5 of 12
6

20. The accused product supports Gigabit Passive Optical Network (GPON). 

GPON device supports high-bandwidth transmission and meets user bandwidth demand. 

https://support.huawei.com/view/PdfRead/EDOC1000099514/SUPE_DOC/k001/document.pd

f

21. Passive Optical Network (PON) uses time-division multiplexing. An Optical 

Network Terminal (ONT) sends a packet in the upstream direction according to the time stamp 

allocated by an Optical Line Terminal (OLT). When an ONT sends optical signal in a nonallocated time stamp, the optical signal conflict with ONT signals. Such an ONT is called a 

Rogue ONT. 

https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/doc/EDOC1100047614/21e7629a/detecting-a-rogueont

22. The accused product Huawei SmartAX MA5600T adopts a mechanism to 

detect rogue ONT. 

https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/knowledge/KB0000549879

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 6 of 12
7

23. The Optical Network Unit continuously sends optical signals. It uses 

upstream bandwidth or the timeslot exclusively. 

https://support.huawei.com/view/PdfRead/EDOC1000099514/SUPE_DOC/k001/document.pdf

24. Optical Network Terminals (ONT) in the optical network unit transmit the 

signals to the Optical Line Terminal (OLT). 

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 7 of 12
8

https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/doc/EDOC1100047614/21e7629a/detecting-a-rogueont

25. Optical Network Unit (ONU) transmits signals with the use of the Optical 

Network Terminal (ONT). The signal is sent to the OLT. ONT alarm profile provides a series 

of alarm threshold parameters that are in use for monitoring of activated ONU lines. 

https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/knowledge/KB0000549879

26. The accused product Huawei SmartAX MA5600T adopts a mechanism to 

detect rogue ONT during a detection period (i.e., monitoring window) which is the amount of 

time for which rogue ONT detection is in process. The detection period is different in different 

products. For example, MA5600T Version V8R8C02 has a detection period of 5 minutes

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 8 of 12
9

https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/knowledge/KB0000549879

27. GPON ONT alarm profile is bound to an Optical Network Unit (ONU). The 

ONU sends alarms to the log host and the NMS if the performance statistics of the line exceed 

the threshold defined in the alarm profile. 

https://support.huawei.com/view/PdfRead/EDOC1000099514/SUPE_DOC/k001/document.pdf

28. When the output goes beyond the threshold, OLT prompts out an alarm to 

notify rogue ONT. Once rogue ONT is detected, the OLT sets a flag for the rogue ONT 

detection. 

https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/knowledge/KB0000549879

29. The accused product Huawei SmartAX MA5600T adopts a mechanism to 

detect rogue ONT during a detection period (i.e., monitoring window) which is the amount of 

time for which rogue ONT detection is in process. The detection period is different in different 

products. For example, MA5600T Version V8R8C02 has a detection period of 5 minutes. 

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 9 of 12
10

https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/knowledge/KB0000549879

30. Once the rogue flag is set, the OLT resets the ONT. After ONT boots up, if 

there is no rogue detection, OLT would identify the earlier detection as false and clear the 

rogue flag. 

https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/knowledge/KB0000549879

31. In view of preceding paragraphs, each and every element of at least claim 1 

of the ’446 Patent is found in the Accused Products.

32. Huawei has and continues to directly infringe at least one claim of the ’446

Patent, literally or under the doctrine of equivalents, by making, using, selling, offering for 

sale, importing, and/or distributing the Accused Products in the United States, including 

within this judicial district, without the authority of Brazos.

33. Huawei has received notice and actual or constructive knowledge of the ’446

Patent since at least the date of service of this Complaint.

34. Since at least the date of service of this Complaint, through its actions, 

Huawei has actively induced product makers, distributors, retailers, and/or end users of the 

Accused Products to infringe the ’446 Patent throughout the United States, including within 

this judicial district, by, among other things, advertising and promoting the use of the Accused 

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 10 of 12
11

Products in various websites, including providing and disseminating product descriptions, 

operating manuals, and other instructions on how to implement and configure the Accused

Products. Examples of such advertising, promoting, and/or instructing include the documents 

at:

• https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/access-network/smartax-ma5600t-pid-18133

• https://support.huawei.com/view/PdfRead/EDOC1000099514/SUPE_DOC/k001/docume

nt.pdf

• https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/doc/EDOC1100047614/21e7629a/detecting-arogue-ont

• https://support.huawei.com/enterprise/en/knowledge/KB0000549879

35. Since at least the date of service of this Complaint, through its actions, Huawei

has contributed to the infringement of the ’446 Patent by having others sell, offer for sale, or 

use the Accused Products throughout the United States, including within this judicial district, 

with knowledge that the Accused Products infringe the ’446 Patent. The Accused Products are 

especially made or adapted for infringing the ’446 Patent and have no substantial noninfringing use. For example, in view of the preceding paragraphs, the Accused Products 

contain functionality which is material to at least one claim of the ’446 Patent.

JURY DEMAND

Brazos hereby demands a jury on all issues so triable.

REQUEST FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Brazos respectfully requests that the Court:

(A) Enter judgment that Huawei infringes one or more claims of the ’446 Patent 

literally and/or under the doctrine of equivalents;

(B) Enter judgment that Huawei has induced infringement and continues to 

induce infringement of one or more claims of the ’446 Patent;

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 11 of 12
12

(C) Enter judgment that Huawei has contributed to and continues to contribute 

to the infringement of one or more claims of the ’446 Patent;

(D) Award Brazos damages, to be paid by Huawei in an amount adequate to 

compensate Brazos for such damages, together with pre-judgment and post-judgment 

interest for the infringement by Huawei of the ’446 Patent through the date such judgment 

is entered in accordance with 35 U.S.C. §284, and increase such award by up to three times 

the amount found or assessed in accordance with 35 U.S.C. §284;

(E) Declare this case exceptional pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §285; and

(F) Award Brazos its costs, disbursements, attorneys’ fees, and such further and 

additional relief as is deemed appropriate by this Court.

Dated: March 22, 2020 Respectfully submitted,

/s/ James L. Etheridge

James L. Etheridge

Texas State Bar No. 24059147 

Ryan S. Loveless

Texas State Bar No. 24036997 

Travis L. Richins

Texas State Bar No. 24061296

ETHERIDGE LAW GROUP, PLLC

2600 E. Southlake Blvd., Suite 120 / 324

Southlake, Texas 76092

Telephone: (817) 470-7249

Facsimile: (817) 887-5950

Jim@EtheridgeLaw.com

Ryan@EtheridgeLaw.com

Travis@EtheridgeLaw.com

COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFF

Case 6:20-cv-00209-ADA Document 1 Filed 03/22/20 Page 12 of 12