Research On The Rationality And Application Conditions Of Standard Essential Patent Application Infringement Injunction

As technique patented and patent standardized have gradually become the development trend of enterprises,standard essential patents have become an important factor in measuring enterprise competitiveness and national development.In recent years,with the increase in the number and influence of standard essential patent infringement lawsuits,one of its core issues,the application of infringement injunctions,has become the focus of discussion in academic circles and judicial practices at home and abroad.The main differences of contention are: in standard essential patent infringement lawsuits,according to the request of the patent holder,can the court issue injunctions and what are the conditions for issuing injunctions?This article summarizes the relevant legal theories and judicial practices at home and abroad,and demonstrates the rationality and application conditions of the application of infringement injunctions on standard essential patents’ lawsuits.Injunctions should be applied in patent infringement litigation,but the conditions should be strict and reasonable in order to prevent patent holdup and patent reverse holdup,and to reasonably balance the interests of both parties in the litigation and the protection of public interests.First of all,standard-essential patents are the results of patent standardized and are a combination of the "private rights" of patents and the "public interests" of standards.In addition,standard essential patents also have the dual attributes of free competition and intellectual property protection.So,the characteristics of standard essential patent litigation lead to the application of infringement injunctions that are different from general patent infringement injunctions.Under the influence of the FRAND principle,standard-essential patent holders must negotiate licenses with standard implementers based on fair,reasonable,and non-discriminatory standards.Patent holders are forbidden from taking advantage of the monopoly position that brought from patents and standards.If the standard essential patent holder has abused its dominant market position,the application of the injunction should be prohibited.From the perspective of legislative,Article 72 of the new "Patent Law" clearly stipulates that infringement injunctions are one of the ways of remedy for patent holders.Interpretation on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in Patent Infringement Disputes(2)Article 24 stipulates that the court may issue an injunction on standard essential patent infringement cases.The “Guidelines for the Determination of Patent Infringement” issued by the Beijing High People’s Court and the “Guidelines for the Trial of Standard Essential Patent Disputes by the Guangdong High People’s Court(Trial)” issued by the Guangdong High People’s Court both ruled that court could issue injunctions on standard essential patent infringement litigation.The conditions for the issue have been specified in more detail.These are all attempts at the legislative level in china to apply the injunction to the standard essential patent infringement litigation.From the perspective of judicial practice,China has gradually become a trial high ground for standard-essential patent litigation.Huawei v.U.S.Inter Digital,Xidian Jietong v.Sony,Wireless Future Technology v.Sony,etc.have had a significant influence on the trail and play a key role in summarizing of judicial practice experience in the application of the injunction.From a practical point of view,Chinese courts are more inclined to issue injunctions in such cases,and the conditions for issuing injunctions more depend on the fault of both parties in the cases.In academic theory,there are three disputation about the application of injunctions in standard-essential patent infringement litigation,including the complete restriction theory,the equal application theory,and the restricted use theory.The restricted use theory has the principle of prohibition of injunction relief,the release of exception,and the safe harbor principle.Through a summary of China’s legislation and judicial practice,there are problems with the conditions for the application of standard-essential patent infringement injunctions.There is a lack of a unified identification standards for the objective offence of the parties,the FRAND principle is vague,it does not distinguish between Non-practicing Entities(NPE)and the others,and irreparable injury Problems which are difficult to prove and lack of consideration of public interest.Secondly,this article believes that in the standard-essential patent infringement litigation,injunctions should be applied.On the one hand,injunctions can reduce the risk of the huge investment in patent standardized and promote the right holders to increase their investment in patent standardized.On the other hand,whether it is academic or legislation,infringement injunction is the basic right of the patentee.Although it is also the remedy for patentee,damages cannot replace injunction because the functions and legal effects are difference,and the injunctions of infringements are only applicable when damages cannot be fully remedied.If the application of the infringement injunction is not restricted at all,it will encourage the patentee to take advantage of the market’s monopoly position to make the patent holdup to the standard implementer,but if the application of the infringement injunction is completely prohibited,it will prompt the infringer to maliciously delay negotiations make the patent reverse holdup to patentee by filing the lawsuits.So,it is necessary to use the infringement injunction reasonably,that is,attach reasonable conditions to the use of the infringement injunction.The essence of issueing infringement injunction is the balance of interests,including the balance of the interests of both parties and the protection of public interests.Finally,the standard essential patent infringement injunction system should be improved.On the one hand,it is necessary to clarify the applicable conditions of the SEP infringement injunction,including the judgment of the fault of both parties in the litigation,the plaintiff’s need to suffer irreparable injury,the stricter restrictions on the Non-practicing Entity(NPE),and make more consideration on the public interests.On the other hand,it is necessary to further improve the applicable rules of the standard essential patent infringement injunction,which is mainly reflected in the limitation of the scope of the injunction,the establishment of a negotiation mechanism based on the FRAND principle,the introduction of a punitive damages system to restrict the issuance of the injunction,and the exploration and improvement of the stay off effectiveness of the injunction.