Seoul Semiconductor claims victory in LED patent suit
South Korean LED producer Seoul Semiconductor has prevailed in patent litigation brought by Taiwanese competitor Everlight Electronics in Germany.
Seoul Semiconductor announced the win yesterday, December 11.
At the centre of the dispute was a patent relating to an “LED package structure for thermal dissipation”, which Everlight had purchased from a US company in 2017.
After acquiring the patent, Everlight asserted it against Seoul Semiconductor in a lawsuit filed in Mannheim, Germany.
However, earlier this month, the court found in favour of Seoul Semiconductor and held that Everlight must bear the costs of the court proceedings.
It follows a victory for Seoul Semiconductor in February, when the English Patents Court held that Everlight’s UK patent relating to an LED package structure for thermal dissipation is invalid.
The patent in the German and UK cases is the same European patent (1,169,735) that was purchased last year.
In the UK dispute, the Patents Court ordered Everlight to pay Seoul Semiconductor £712,247 ($893,184) in costs.
The South Korean company added that it is pursuing patent infringement suits against a global distributor of Everlight’s high and mid-power LED products in Germany, Italy, and Japan.
Nam Ki-bum, executive vice president of the lighting department of Seoul Semiconductor, said: “Seoul has invested approximately 100 billion South Korean Won ($88.6 million) per year in research and development to ensure that it creates its own cutting-edge technology and products, thereby establishing its own formidable patent portfolio.
“We hope that our commitment and success for technology innovation would inspire young entrepreneurs and small businesses,” he added.
Seoul Semiconductor has been active in enforcing its IP. The South Korean company recently accused consumer electronics retailer Fry’s Electronics of infringing 19 patents, and last year, it sued bulb seller Archipelago Lighting for infringing 12 patents.
It also sued US retailer Kmart for patent infringement, accusing the retailer of selling illegally manufactured product. The companies settled the dispute in 2017.
Last month, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit vacated a $4 million jury award in favour of Seoul Semiconductor. However, the court did confirm that the asserted patents, used in flat screen TVs and laptops, are valid and that rival Enplas Corporation had induced infringement of them.
Everlight also enjoyed a recent win at the Federal Circuit, after it reversed a district court’s ruling in a dispute between Boston University and LED manufacturers, including Everlight. The university had failed to meet the enablement requirement of the asserted patents, the court said.
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