GERMANY
GERMANY
INDEPENDENT PATENT OWNERS FUNCTION AS MARKET INTERMEDIARIES, AND BY DOING SO, THEY INCREASE PATENT LIQUIDITY, SET MARKET CLEARING PRICES, AND FOSTER EFFICIENCY IN THE IP ECONOMY.
to factors such as distinct national rules with respect to applicable prior art. Patent holders therefore can face different claim scopes in different countries even though the claims originate from a single EP.
European v US NPEs
How do European NPEs differ from those in the US? For one, they have kept a lower profile and have not published a lot outside of Europe. With respect to European NPEs that actively enforce infringed patents (IPCom, Sisvel, Papst Licensing) they certainly choose more carefully where to assert their rights. IPCom and Sisvel very consciously chose Germany as the venue to litigate their cases despite patent portfolios that comprised US patents as well. Papst Licensing, whenever negotiations do not resolve an infringement matter with European, American, or Asian infringers, is equally active in courts in the US as well as in Europe, especially Germany. Te market for patent transactions in Europe is still significantly less developed compared to the US but is becoming more and more open for NPEs.
In general there seems to be a focus on quality patents among the European NPEs. Te goal for most of them is not to threaten an infringer and collect a litigation avoidance fee, but instead to participate in the success of a valuable technology covered by the patent they monetise and license out. In order to identify a patent family worth monetising, a thorough due diligence process is essential. First of all, it is crucial to verify that respective patent claims read on infringing products.
In parallel, the patent claims validity involving extensive prior art searches has to be investigated. Having assessed the technology, the main focus is on the companies potentially involved in the infringements, and the markets they are selling their products to—locally and also quantitatively, including
70 World Intellectual Property Review e-Digest 2013
where the product is made as well as where it is sold worldwide. NPEs in the US so far seem to have taken a look only at the US as their stage, while Europeans, though later to the game, have a broader view.
Conclusion
Just as markets for intangibles such as capital, debt, and risk have evolved over the past century, a market for patent assets has also taken form. Te emergence of patent monetisation companies in Europe to complement those already established in the US is a sign of progress that the idea of innovation as a financial asset has arrived. Independent patent owners function as market intermediaries, and by doing so, they increase patent liquidity, set market clearing prices, and foster efficiency in the IP economy.
Good patents, used fairly, facilitate invention and have a positive impact on innovation. Weakening patents is likely to weaken innovation too. Te oſten one-sided dialogue about NPEs, motivated in part by the self-interest of companies who may be infringers, serves to undermine an increasingly global and intangible asset-driven knowledge-based economy.
Daniel Papst is managing director of Papst Licensing. He can be contacted at:
info@papstlicensing.com
Daniel Papst is an electrical engineer and a German patent attorney as well as managing director and co-owner of Papst Licensing GmbH & Co KG, an IP monetisation company founded by his late father, Georg Papst, in 1993 in Germany.
www.worldipreview.com
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