Chinese Firm Admits Guilt in Stealing Trade Secrets from Motorola’s Walkie-Talkie Technology

A Chinese telecom firm recently raised alarms by admitting to stealing trade secrets from Motorola. This company, Hytera Communications Corp., pleaded guilty in a Chicago federal court. The secrets were about digital technology used in walkie-talkies, crucial for police and firefighters.

Hytera could face a hefty fine of up to $60 million, with sentencing set for November 6. They also need to pay Motorola, based in Chicago, an undisclosed amount in restitution.

According to prosecutors, Hytera attracted Motorola employees by offering them much higher salaries and stock options. These engineers then helped to lift documents and source code from Motorola’s records to benefit Hytera in Shenzhen, China.

After obtaining the stolen information, Hytera created its own radio products, some of which found their way into the Illinois market.

This theft took place after the Federal Communications Commission mandated a shift from analog to digital mobile radios in 2008. Prosecutors noted that Hytera lagged behind Motorola in this transition.

A 2007 meeting at Hytera showed that defeating Motorola in the middle and high-end market was a primary goal. G.K. Kok was the first Motorola employee recruited by Hytera, and he is now waiting for sentencing after admitting his part in the scheme.

Hytera lured Kok with a 75% salary increase to $165,000 and 600,000 stock options. In response, he helped bring in other engineers from Motorola. Between 2007 and 2019, Hytera sold radio products made using Motorola’s stolen technology worldwide.

A federal jury in Chicago previously ordered Hytera to pay Motorola Solutions $764 million in damages related to this case. Although a judge later reduced this amount to $543 million, a federal appeals court upheld $407 million for damages, calling the theft a “large and blatant” act.