Patent rights become smart phone manufacturers competitive weapon

With the integration of the computer industry and the wireless communications industry, cross-border cooperation has made the industry's borders increasingly blurred and the contention for patent rights has continuously increased. Intensified patent disputes not only become a weight for companies to cope with fierce competition, but also have an important impact on the development of the entire industry. In recent years, the smart phone market has become very lively, and the battle for market among manufacturers has intensified. The war is not only around the product itself, but also Spread to product patents.

According to reports, Apple Inc. sued Motorola Inc. on October 30th local time and claimed that several Motorola products including Droid infringed on Apple’s six patents. Coincidentally, Apple, which has always been known for its technological innovation strength, is not only the target of Motorola, but also Nokia, the mobile phone giant. Apple claims that Nokia violated many of its patents. However, recently ITC (International Trade Center) brought good news to Nokia. ITC stated that after 6 months of investigation, it was found that Apple's allegations of Nokia's patent infringement were invalid.

Patent litigation in the smartphone field continues

In recent years, the smart phone market has been booming, and the development situation is surpassing waves. According to foreign media reports, market research firm IDC pointed out that as consumers flock to Nokia, Apple and RIM smart phones, global smartphone shipments in the third quarter of this year increased nearly 90%.

Faced with such a huge market opportunity, all major businesses are, of course, coveted and have gathered in the smart phone market. For a while, the smart phone market stars shine. There is an incomparable apple, Motorola, the former dominant Nokia, a powerful blackberry, and many new recruits. In response, the competition in the smart phone market is also heating up. The friction between major manufacturers Disputes have also become increasingly prominent. Among them, the patent issue is the most representative.

In fact, the lawsuits and disputes between major mobile phone giants have cropped up one after another and they have fallen into a chain of patent litigation. The giants and recruits in the smart phone field are not alone. Apple's patent infringement against Motorola and Nokia is a typical example. However, sources said that before Apple sued the Wisconsin Federal Court, Motorola had first sued Apple in October. Coincidentally, according to Hong Kong and Taiwan media reports, Microsoft recently formally filed a patent infringement suit against Motorola with the US International Trade Commission (ITC). In its press release, Microsoft stated that Motorola’s Android smartphone products infringe on its nine patents. In addition, domestic mobile phone manufacturers have similar experience. Meizu, which is known as the domestic machine emperor, was sued because of the M8's resemblance to the iPhone. Apple was ordered to withdraw from the market. It seems that the horn of patent litigation in the field of smartphones has already sounded, and the war behind this product is imminent.

Patent litigation avatars market competition weapons

The patented salivation of smart phones now has its own reasons, including both objective and subjective factors.

Judging from the objective factors, the mobile Internet is in the ascendant, the smart phone market has unlimited business opportunities, the prosperous appearance on the surface and the huge profit space behind it have attracted major manufacturers. The old mobile phone manufacturers of course desperately wanted to keep their original one-acre three-points, and continued to cultivate their secrets while continuing to expand their boundaries. For example, Motorola's Android strategy took a backslide and managed to regain its profitability for the first time in the third quarter. However, Nokia's hardship for the shrinking market in Saipan is a long-term and unpredictable process. At the same time, new recruits who have crossed the border from other areas have also tried their best to market. This example is not uncommon, as powerful as Microsoft also failed to withstand the temptation of smart phone opportunities, high-profile launch of Windows Phone7, has always been in the computer field, Hewlett-Packard also unwilling to loneliness, recently officially demonstrated to the market equipped with Web OS The 2.0-system Palm Pre 2 mobile phone... In this situation, the boundaries between mobile communications and the Internet are blurring. The recruits who have entered the smart phone market will inevitably step into the minefield at the same time, which is one of the reasons for the frequent occurrence of patent litigation in the mobile phone market.

Judging from the subjective factors, with the intensification of market competition, maintaining patent pressure has become an important weapon to curb competitors and compete for markets. It is reported that the principle of compensation for patent infringement in the United States is punitive, and the amount of punishment for malicious infringement is even more astronomical. It is precisely because of the serious consequences that various international giants will hire lawyers to assess patent risks and produce reports before they produce their products. Mark Kässlen, an intellectual property lawyer at Lowenstein Sandler, said that patent litigation is a means of fighting competitors. He said: "They not only want to compete in the market, but also use the patent portfolio, try to drag and squeeze competitors." From this point of view, it is no wonder that Apple, Microsoft, and other IT crocodiles have been so “small” in terms of patent issues.

The advantages and disadvantages of patent wars in the 3G era

The litigation between the major players in the smart phone market has become a reality. Then, what is the impact of such a continuous war on the smart phone market today when 3G technology is in full swing? Is it that promoting innovation also seems to curb innovation? Is it to promote industrial development or become a stumbling block on the road to development? For this, the views of the industry are not uniform.

Supporters believe that such litigation is of great significance to the development of the entire smart phone industry. The reason is that: An important feature of communication is the requirement for interconnection and interoperability, and the characteristic of technology is to follow the standard. However, people's innovative thinking and models under the same standard must be similar, and there are also overlapping marginal patents, each with its own characteristics and strengths. The result of such patent litigation is often cross-licensing, reconciliation or partial compensation. All these will eliminate patent barriers, allow all parties to be more innovative and develop, and stimulate innovation. Obviously, the long-term development of the entire industry is of great significance.

Opponents argued that patents have already created incentives for innovation in the industry, avoiding plagiarism by their opponents, and becoming competitive weapons for the business sector. However, when the patent warfare hits a certain level, it may hinder the growth of industrial innovation. What is even more serious is that if this kind of patent warfare is frequently launched in order to suppress it, over time, major manufacturers will certainly be overwhelmed and the entire market will be affected. Moreover, the patent warfare is too intensive, and it is also very easy to encourage vicious competition, which inevitably impairs the development of the entire industry.


"Water can carry a boat and it can also overturn it." The patent war has the same effect on the development of the smart phone market. In other words, the patent litigation battle is a double-edged sword. A proper patent battle can eliminate technical barriers and promote innovation. If the frequency of patent warfare is too high, then hitting a certain level will become an obstacle to the development of the entire industry.

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