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18. June 2024

Equality of arms or anti-trust offence?

The use of 4G or 5G in smartphones or cars requires the licensing of thousands of patents. Implementers can now jointly negotiate mobile phone patent rights, which could strengthen their position in FRAND negotiations.

On June 10, 2024, the German Federal Cartel Office has given car manufacturers Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes as well as the steel group ThyssenKrupp the green light for joint negotiations on certain mobile phone patent rights. The Federal Cartel Office announced that it had authorised the launch of the "Automotive Licensing Negotiation Group". The group is open to other companies from the automotive industry.

The use of 4G or 5G in smartphones or cars requires the licensing of thousands of patents, said Andreas Mundt, head of the Federal Cartel Office. There are no major objections to the negotiating group as long as it is limited to non-automotive-specific standards and remains open to other members.

The car industry only accounts for less than 15 per cent of the corresponding mobile phone licences, and the licence costs for the patents concerned only make up a small proportion of the production costs of a vehicle, the Cartel Office explained its decision.

(See the official press release of June 10, 2024)

07. June 2024

EUROPEAN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SEMINAR 2024

TIME FOR A GET-TOGETHER!

Registration for our 34th Seminar from October 6 to 9, 2024 in Freising, Germany, is now online.
Learn more and register here!

We are looking forward to seeing you!

06. June 2024

FOOTBALL FANS WORLDWIDE CAN BREATHE A SIGH OF RELIEF

The Unified Patent Court has rejected an application for a preliminary injunction against UEFA.

Background of the case:

UEFA and its technology partner, Kinexon, faced a legal challenge just before the start of EURO 2024. The challenge came from Ballinno, a Dutch non-practicing entity (NPE), which sought a preliminary injunction (PI) against the use of a patented technology for detecting offside situations in football. Ballinno claimed that UEFA's method, facilitated by Kinexon's technology, infringed on its European patent 1 944 067.

The patent in question relates to a "method and system for detecting an offside situation" using real-time acoustic signals. Ballinno filed both an infringement complaint and a PI application on April 18, 2024. The urgency of the request was highlighted by the proximity of the EURO 2024, which is set to begin on June 14, 2024, in Germany—one of the states where the patent remains valid despite lapsing in other UPC states.

Ballinno, having acquired the patent from Invit BV just in February 2024, sought to enforce its rights through the Unified Patent Court (UPC). Notably, its status as a company that holds just one patent but does not manufacture products or supply services protected by this patent, played a crucial role in the court's considerations. Moreover, Ballinno's financial status was questioned, leading the Hamburg Local Division to demand a €56,000 security payment from Ballinno to cover potential costs if it lost the case. Ballinno has now the option to appeal the decision.

The decision of the Hamburg Local Division:

Remarkably, the UPC's Hamburg Local Division handed down its decision to reject the PI request within just 1,5 months. The judges were neither convinced that the patent was infringed nor that Ballinno had acted with due urgency. Furthermore, the fact that Ballinno is a prototype of an NPE factored into the court's balancing of interests, leading to the denial of the PI.

This decision can be taken as another proof that the UPC seems to have a tendency to reject PI applications. According to the statistics so far, 71% of the UPC's first instance PI decisions have been rejections.

Despite the challenges for patent holders, the UPC again proofed to be notably quick in delivering its decisions. The Hamburg Local Division's ruling in this case came faster than any previous PI ruling. Generally, the UPC has issued PI decisions within three to five months of filing, showcasing its efficiency in handling such requests.

The broader patent community, but in particular NPEs, will closely watch how the UPC's approach to PIs evolves. Although the Munich Local Division has previously stated that being an NPE may not automatically prevent obtaining a PI, the balancing of competing interests in these preliminary proceedings is decisive and may be more of a problem for NPEs than for traditional companies.

What lesson is learned here?

The rejection of Ballinno's PI request against UEFA and Kinexon underscores the challenges faced by NPEs in the UPC system. While the court is efficient, its cautious approach to granting PIs, particularly against the backdrop of high-profile events like EURO 2024, highlights the stringent standards patent owners must meet to be successful in preliminary proceedings before the UPC.

Rainer Kuhnen

05. June 2024

Romania becomes the 18th UPC member

On May 31, 2024, Romania has deposited its instrument of ratification and will accede to the UPCA on 1 September 2024.

The unitary patent will now cover 18 member states.

27. May 2024

KITCHBO ...

... is a revolutionary silicone baking mat that can do much more than just bake. Julian Graf took a look at the innovation behind it in our blog "Shark Tank of Patents".

21. May 2024

UPC Agreement ratified by Romania

On April 14, 2024, Romania's Law 81/2024 came into effect, officially ratifying the Unified Patent Court Agreement (UPCA). According to Article 89(2) of the UPCA, this ratification will take effect on the first day of the fourth month following the deposit of the instrument of ratification with the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union. If Romania promptly deposits this instrument, it could become a contracting member state as early as September 1, 2024.

This accession will make Romania the 18th contracting member state where European patents with unitary effect will be available and subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the UPC for disputes related to infringement and invalidity. During the transitional period, classical European patents designating Romania that are not opted out of the UPC's jurisdiction will be subject to both UPC and national jurisdiction. With Romania as a contracting state to the UPCA, it will leave six of the 24 UPCA signatory states that still needing to complete the ratification process.

19. April 2024

Unified Patent Court starts with Main Hearings

The inaugural main hearing at the Unified Patent Court (UPC) was conducted before the Munich local division on April 16, 2024, marking a significant milestone in the still very young history of the UPC. The court reviewed a patent infringement claim filed by KraussMaffei Extrusion against Troester GmbH, making it the first substantial patent infringement hearing at the UPC. Previously, the UPC's divisions have primarily handled provisional injunctions and procedural matters within the first ten months.

In this landmark case, KraussMaffei Extrusion initiated the lawsuit against Troester in July 2023 over the patent EP 3 221 117, registered under case ID: ACT_528357/2023. Both firms are competitors in the tyre tread manufacturing sector. The early scheduling of the hearing resulted from Troester's decision to waive on counterclaim for revocation, choosing instead to focus on a pending appeal against the patent at the European Patent Office (EPO). The EPO's Boards of Appeal are expected to deliver a decision on the appeal by the end of July, after which the Munich local division will hand down its judgment.

Further, the UPC has scheduled three more infringement hearings before the summer break:

  • Philips vs Belkin concerning Wifi technology in Munich on May 14,
  • Kaldewei vs Bette over bathroom equipment in Düsseldorf on May 16, and
  • Abbott vs Dexcom over glucose-monitoring technology in Paris on May 24
19. April 2024

Irland's UPC referendum postponed

On April 16, 2024, Ireland's minister for enterprise, trade and employment, Peter Burke, has confirmed that the Irish government has postponed its scheduled referendum on ratification on the UPC Agreement.
Originally due to be held on 7 June 2024 to coincide with the local and European elections, the government has not confirmed a new date .

In Ireland, a referendum on the country for actually acceding to the UPC is required to give the jurisdictional power of the Irish courts to the supranational UPC. In a statement, Burke says, "While the government continues to believe that joining the UPC is essential and that the referendum should be pursued, it is clear to me that more time is needed for public discourse and engagement on the matter to help inform the debate." In other words, the public awareness for the importance to joining the UPC is currently estimated not high enough to secure an affirmative referendum vote.

31. March 2024

"HAEPSI KEBAG"...

is a functional and sustainable kebab packaging. Find out more about its special feature in the article on our blog "Shark Tank of Patents" by Julian Graf.

28. March 2024

THE HARIBO GUMMY BEAR HAS CHEST HAIR?

an article by Birgit Reiter published in the ECTA Bulletin March 2024

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