Sharp asks ITC to investigate Hisense as patent agreement sees prices fall
Electronics company Sharp has petitioned the International Trade Commission (ITC) to launch an investigation into patent infringement by rival Hisense, despite having a licensing agreement with the company.
In July, Sharp filed a lawsuit in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York claiming Chinese company Hisense had infringed US patent numbers 9,148,874 and 9,258,074, relating to technology that allows TVs to connect to the internet.
Sharp had signed an agreement with Hisense to sell Sharp-branded TVs in the US, but claimed this deal did not extend to Hisense products.
“Sharp envisioned that the brand would be used to market larger panel and higher margin TVs, especially due to its innovative features,” it said in the claim.
It continued: “Nevertheless, the average sale price of Sharp-branded TVs has continued to deteriorate since its agreement.”
Sharp accused Hisense of using its patented technology in Hisense’s own products, and in doing the average price of Hisense TVs increased.
The company said that Hisense’s TVs did not contain the disputed Wi-Fi functionality before its patents were issued.
As a result, Sharp was seeking damages, injunctive relief, costs and a jury trial.
In a statement released yesterday, August 29, Sharp revealed it had requested the ITC investigation “after finding that Hisense Group smart TVs sold in the US market infringe upon Sharp’s wireless LAN patents in the US”.
If the ITC finds Hisense liable, imports of its smart TVs could be banned in the US.
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