The Offensive and Defendsive Strategies of Patent Infringement: Take Apple v. hTC as the example

• Main Authors: Wu Yu Feng, 吳宥鋒
• Other Authors: Teng Ying Maw
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2013
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/10554495245036237339

碩士 === 義守大學 === 管理學院管理碩士在職專班 === 101 === Abstract Patents belong to intangible property. Generally, when having patent litigation, the defendants disclose the events or claim that a patent is invalid. Because of patent validity and uncertain scope of protection, patent owners may encounter different outcomes respecting patent infringement. Except for patented technology, Doctrine of Equivalents (Reverse Doctrine of Equivalents), All-Elements Rule (All-Limitations Rule), and collateral estoppel will affect the judgment of patent validity and infringement in patent litigation. The difficulties of the judgment of patent infringement are that they usually need an explanation of each part of the patent. The court should make the issue apparent and give two parties an opportunity to state and debate their arguments fully. If patent infringement is confirmed, patent owners have the responsibilities for producing evidence regarding the scope of the damage compensation and quotas. There is a positive relationship between damage compensation and patent value; therefore, people may have rights to receive reasonable royalty incomes. American evidence discovery process helps potent owners collect tangible evidence with regard to damage compensation, which can decrease the difficulties of producing evidence. American regards patents as exclusive rights, not absolute rights. In the future, in addition to enterprises’ products and marketing, transnational patents and antitrust litigation will become new instruments. This paper focuses on patent litigation and examines that people need to face the annoying litigation process if they are involved in patent litigation. Moreover, since litigation will cause the products to be prohibited to sell, it may influence original products sales and the release of new products; besides, people may need to pay huge money for litigation, which makes the candle burn at both ends. Not only does litigation affect overall business operations, but it also damages market competitiveness. Additionally, the brands that the owners establish will be destroyed. Once investors do not have confidence in the enterprises, share price will go down as well as hurt them. The battle of patent infringement has become a new mode of global competition. Hence, future enterprises that are charged with patent infringement will be getting more and more prevalent, so the enterprises have to be cautious. Taiwan's economic environment is a shallow saucer. Due to insufficient domestic demand, the enterprises tend to be export-orientated. Besides, Taiwan is the kingdom of world-class Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), and thus we are easy to be involved in patent litigation. In other words, whatever the enterprises are eager to create their own brands or willing to be a supply station for production with foreign companies, the war of patents is a path that they have to work on. As a consequence, patent infringement litigation has become a means for national enterprises to consolidate their brand value, even getting benefits from other enterprises. Taiwan’s enterprises should increase the awareness concerning risk management and strengthen compliance with international regulations. This paper begins with Patent Law and litigation process, and takes HTC and Apple as main examples; in addition, America’s patents are also discussed. It is anticipated that the enterprises can establish their strategies to prevent themselves from attacking when facing patent infringement, and they can reexamine their policies and systems as well as assist themselves in setting up the mechanisms of risk management validly.