With economic globalization, rapid technological development, and increasingly fierce market competition, companies, especially multinational corporations, are increasingly focusing on the implementation of a patent strategy to occupy and control the market. Recently, the United States Apple Inc. filed a patent application for the touch screen technology of mobile devices with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and was granted patent rights by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, reflecting this trend.
Originally, the granting of a patent for a technical solution was a normal thing in the determination of patent rights, but due to the wide coverage of some granted patents, it represented an exclusive monopoly on a new technology field and market and had a deep impact on its competitors. Therefore, the right to make such patents should naturally be treated with “a different eye†and be given special attention. In fact, such patents are often basic patents in a technical field. Having obtained this basic patent, they can be protected with broad patent claims and gain more monopolistic interests. In patent strategy theory, this is called the basic patent strategy and it belongs to the “vanguard†of offensive patent strategy. Historically, many large companies have grown by relying on having one or several basic patents to win sufficient market competitive advantage and core competitiveness.
The touch screen patent highlights the new situation of patent competition. It reflects Apple’s attempt to suppress rivals such as Samsung, Motorola, and Nokia with mobile phone touch screen technology as a pre-existing basic patent, monopolizing the market's intentions because the touch screen has become a smart phone. With common configurations, smart phones manufactured and sold by these companies are likely to fall into the protection of Apple's patents. With its patent rights, Apple can prohibit other manufacturers in the US market from manufacturing and selling mobile devices such as smart phones and tablet computers equipped with touch screens. From this point of view, from the point of view of patent litigation as an important strategy for patent competition and deterrence as well as the basic means of attacking competitors, a new round of patent warfare may occur at any time.
Although the patent right is a statutory monopoly right, it is also restricted in its exercise in order to achieve a balance between the protection of patent rights and social public interests. Regarding Apple's application for and acquisition of touch screen patents, first of all, the protection scope determined by Apple's patent claims for touch screens cannot be so great that the prior art involving touch screens is covered by the scope of protection. Known and publicly available prior art cannot be included in the scope of protection. This is the basic principle of patent protection. When China's patent law was revised in 2008, it added the existing technology defense system. Secondly, touch screen technology has been widely applied in the field of smart phones nowadays. If a patent right infringement dispute occurs, the defendant may propose that the touch screen technology has become an industry standard defense, which is an advantageous restriction for Apple's patented touch screen patents. Again, even if it is not the second case, Apple’s patented touch screen may still be subject to antitrust laws. In the United States in particular, great emphasis is placed on anti-monopoly control in the area of ​​intellectual property. Legislation and the judiciary are trying to establish a balance between so-called competition policies between intellectual property protection and anti-monopoly policies.
In any case, Apple's acquisition of touch screen patents in the United States is a very important event in this field, highlighting the new trend of contemporary patent competition, and it is worth paying attention to and thinking about the profound implication behind it and its impact on relevant competitors and product markets. The author believes that at least the following points are worth noting: First, patent competition is a competitive form in which contemporary companies seek survival and development. Chinese enterprises should attach great importance to patent issues of enterprises and strengthen the implementation of the formulation of patent strategies; second, multinational companies Paying great attention to the patent strategy to control the market, Chinese companies, especially leading technology companies, should pay attention to the implementation of offensive patent strategies and implement core technological breakthroughs. It should be noted that in the past, China’s enterprises have not paid enough attention to some of the major patent and other intellectual property events that occurred abroad. Under the background of economic globalization and increasingly intellectual property rights, Chinese companies and technology research institutions should maintain a high degree of this. Concern to be prepared to take precautions in advance.
Originally, the granting of a patent for a technical solution was a normal thing in the determination of patent rights, but due to the wide coverage of some granted patents, it represented an exclusive monopoly on a new technology field and market and had a deep impact on its competitors. Therefore, the right to make such patents should naturally be treated with “a different eye†and be given special attention. In fact, such patents are often basic patents in a technical field. Having obtained this basic patent, they can be protected with broad patent claims and gain more monopolistic interests. In patent strategy theory, this is called the basic patent strategy and it belongs to the “vanguard†of offensive patent strategy. Historically, many large companies have grown by relying on having one or several basic patents to win sufficient market competitive advantage and core competitiveness.
The touch screen patent highlights the new situation of patent competition. It reflects Apple’s attempt to suppress rivals such as Samsung, Motorola, and Nokia with mobile phone touch screen technology as a pre-existing basic patent, monopolizing the market's intentions because the touch screen has become a smart phone. With common configurations, smart phones manufactured and sold by these companies are likely to fall into the protection of Apple's patents. With its patent rights, Apple can prohibit other manufacturers in the US market from manufacturing and selling mobile devices such as smart phones and tablet computers equipped with touch screens. From this point of view, from the point of view of patent litigation as an important strategy for patent competition and deterrence as well as the basic means of attacking competitors, a new round of patent warfare may occur at any time.
Although the patent right is a statutory monopoly right, it is also restricted in its exercise in order to achieve a balance between the protection of patent rights and social public interests. Regarding Apple's application for and acquisition of touch screen patents, first of all, the protection scope determined by Apple's patent claims for touch screens cannot be so great that the prior art involving touch screens is covered by the scope of protection. Known and publicly available prior art cannot be included in the scope of protection. This is the basic principle of patent protection. When China's patent law was revised in 2008, it added the existing technology defense system. Secondly, touch screen technology has been widely applied in the field of smart phones nowadays. If a patent right infringement dispute occurs, the defendant may propose that the touch screen technology has become an industry standard defense, which is an advantageous restriction for Apple's patented touch screen patents. Again, even if it is not the second case, Apple’s patented touch screen may still be subject to antitrust laws. In the United States in particular, great emphasis is placed on anti-monopoly control in the area of ​​intellectual property. Legislation and the judiciary are trying to establish a balance between so-called competition policies between intellectual property protection and anti-monopoly policies.
In any case, Apple's acquisition of touch screen patents in the United States is a very important event in this field, highlighting the new trend of contemporary patent competition, and it is worth paying attention to and thinking about the profound implication behind it and its impact on relevant competitors and product markets. The author believes that at least the following points are worth noting: First, patent competition is a competitive form in which contemporary companies seek survival and development. Chinese enterprises should attach great importance to patent issues of enterprises and strengthen the implementation of the formulation of patent strategies; second, multinational companies Paying great attention to the patent strategy to control the market, Chinese companies, especially leading technology companies, should pay attention to the implementation of offensive patent strategies and implement core technological breakthroughs. It should be noted that in the past, China’s enterprises have not paid enough attention to some of the major patent and other intellectual property events that occurred abroad. Under the background of economic globalization and increasingly intellectual property rights, Chinese companies and technology research institutions should maintain a high degree of this. Concern to be prepared to take precautions in advance.
Dongguan Hengqing Electronics Co., Ltd. , http://www.chbluetooth.com