Now also Sirui and Meike: Nikon sues Z-Mount lens manufacturers - fewer and more expensive in the future?
[14:40 Thu,5.March 2026 by Thomas Richter]
Since January, there have been rumors that Nikon is suing Viltrox in China over a dispute regarding the licensing of Z-mount autofocus lenses. Now, it seems that more manufacturers are affected: Sirui and Meike have now withdrawn their Z-mount lenses from the market in China following lawsuits from Nikon.
The first day of the court hearing between Nikon and Viltrox in Shanghai was on March 3rd. Now, after various speculations, it is also becoming clear what the legal dispute is about: Nikon is suing because Nikon&s current lawsuit targets autofocus lenses from third-party manufacturers and demands a sales ban for them.
Nikon accuses Viltrox of having used copyrighted technologies (especially electronic communication protocols for autofocus between camera and lens) while Nikon&s patents were still in the application phase. Nikon is now demanding compensation payments from Viltrox for these sales and license fees for future sales.
Not just Viltrox
According to reports from Chinese social networks, Nikon has not only sued Viltrox but also sent legal warning letters to almost all Chinese third-party manufacturers of Z-mount autofocus lenses beforehand. Many of these manufacturers are reportedly currently in negotiations with Nikon.
In response to Nikon&s lawsuit, Sirui and Meike have already temporarily withdrawn their Z-mount autofocus lenses from the Chinese market—presumably to await the outcome of the negotiations. It is likely that other manufacturers of unlicensed Nikon Z lenses, such as Yongnuo, TTArtisan, Laowa, Samyang, and 7Artisans, will follow the example of Sirui and Meike.
Larger Lens Offering Thanks to Third-Party Manufacturers
As we previously suspected, Nikon—unlike Canon, which completely locked third-party vendors out of its RF mount with cease-and-desist declarations—is not aiming for a ban on third-party autofocus lenses for the Z-mount, but rather for the payment of license fees—as Sigma, Tamron, Voigtländer, and ZEISS already do. This makes sense because these lenses, some of which Nikon does not even have in its own portfolio, increase the range of lenses and thus the attractiveness of Nikon&s Z-mount system.
Nikon expressed this in a statement in the following words: "Nikon has always worked with officially licensed partners to expand the Z-mount ecosystem... We promote technological progress through healthy competition and support the use of third-party lenses licensed by Nikon."
Smaller Selection and Higher Prices?
There is concern that Nikon will not simply allow all third-party manufacturers to license their products across the board, but will carefully select which lenses may continue to be sold. Nikon could thus ban cheap competing products that become too much of a threat to its own original lenses.
For Nikon Z users, this would mean that the golden age of a large number of cheap, Chinese autofocus alternatives is over for the time being—at least until the new rules of the game (and license fees) are clarified. However, it still appears that all third-party Nikon Z autofocus lenses are available outside of China, so it remains to be seen when the lawsuits in China will also have a worldwide impact.
