In Germany, car manufacturer Daimler AG (maker of Mercedes-Benz) suffered an IP loss at court on September 10, 2020. It was handed a decision by a Munich court that it was infringing upon mobile technology of Japan’s Sharp in its automobiles.[1] Subsequently, on October 7, Sharp announced that it had reached a licensing agreement with Daimler regarding the patent technology, enabling Daimler to avoid a domestic sales ban on its vehicles.[2]
Sharp reported that the patents licensed involved its LTE technology and Standard Essential Patent (SEP) technology for such wireless networking. Sharp boasts that it holds about 6,000 SEPs and has been making LTE-related SEP licensing agreements with many leading corporations.[3] However, the license only covers the patent not already licensed by Sharp to the suppliers of Daimler, so it is a complementary license.[4]
Sharp has drawn attention for its increased aggressiveness in suing competitors worldwide over patent infringement, as an editorial in the business paper Sankei Shimbun showed in July 2020. That editorial suggested that this is due to the influence Sharp’s Taiwanese investor Foxconn (formerly Hon Hai), which brought Sharp back from impending demise.[5] Sharp, on the other hand, positions itself as willing to sue to protect its IP but fundamentally committed to negotiations on its official policy site.[6] Sharp is at least trying to see if it is worth the struggle of litigating, in courts around the world.
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Taro Yaguchi
Sources
[1] Automotive News Europe. “Daimler risks sales ban after Sharp wins patent clash.” https://europe.autonews.com/automakers/daimler-risks-sales-ban-after-sharp-wins-patent-clash September 10, 2020. Accessed October 15, 2020.
[2] Miyazawa Yusuke, Furukawa Yuki. “シャープ、独ダイムラーと和解－特許ライセンス契約を締結 [Sharp and German Daimler make peace, conclude a patent licensing agreement].”
https://www.bloomberg.co.jp/news/articles/2020-10-07/QHT8QRDWX2QD01 Bloomberg. Updated October 7, 2020. Accessed October 15, 2020.
[3] Sharp. “ダイムラーとLTE特許ライセンス契約を締結 [Concluded a LTE patent licensing contract with Daimler].” https://corporate.jp.sharp/news/201007-a.html October 7, 2020. Accessed October 15, 2020.
[4] Automotive News. “Sharp signs licensing deal with Daimler after settling patent lawsuit.” https://www.autonews.com/technology/sharp-signs-licensing-deal-daimler-after-settling-patent-lawsuit October 7, 2020. Accessed October 15, 2020.
[5] Yamamoto Koji. “テスラも標的、米中企業に訴訟連発するシャープの知財戦略
[Even Tesla a target, as Sharp’s IP strategy sues multiple US, Chinese corporations].” https://special.sankei.com/a/economy/article/20200710/0001.html Sankei Shimbun. July 13, 2020. Accessed October 15, 2020.
[6] Sharp. “研究開発・知的財産 [Research & Development, Intellectual Property].” https://corporate.jp.sharp/ir/intellectual/ n.d. Accessed October 15, 2020.
Header image by Peter H from Pixabay.
