This week on MIP: UPC’s FRAND first | Samsung’s $118m patent blow

November 29 2024

Samsung sign on headquarters building in Milan, Italy. The Samsu

The Unified Patent Court’s first FRAND judgment, a patent blow for Samsung, and a new design law treaty were among the top IP stories this week

We review what’s been happening in IP and provide a rundown of Managing IP’s news and analysis from the past week.

This week in IP

FRAND first

The Unified Patent Court handed down its first FRAND judgment on Friday, November 22, in a dispute between Panasonic and Oppo. The local division in Mannheim banned Oppo from selling certain mobile devices in UPC territories and rejected the Chinese company's counterclaim, finding that it had not behaved in a FRAND manner.

Citi secrets

Two former bankers at Citigroup have hit back against a lawsuit that accused them of taking trade secrets to their new employer, Bank of Montreal. John Mitchell and Benjamin Carr, who joined Bank of Montreal last month, denied Citi's allegations in a filing on Monday, November 25.

Grand designs

WIPO member states approved a new treaty on designs on Friday, November 22. According to WIPO, the Riyadh Design Law Treaty – so called in recognition of the city that hosted the final stage negotiations – will make it easier, faster, and more affordable for designers to protect their designs both at home and abroad.

Samsung blow

A jury at the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas ordered Samsung to pay $118 million in damages to Netlist following a patent infringement lawsuit covering data processing technology. Netlist also won a $303 million verdict against Samsung in a related case last year. The order in the latest dispute was handed down on Friday, November 22.

Sky high piracy

Online piracy in the EU remains high, with internet users accessing illegal content 10 times each month, according to an EUIPO report. The report, published yesterday, November 28, showed that pirated television content accounts for half of all digital piracy and that traffic has risen to illicit internet protocol television sites.

Articles published on Managing IP this week include:

The IP Lounge: AI suspicions, Qantm’s post-investment plans

In this episode, the team delved into some of the biggest talking points from the last few weeks.

These included an interview with leaders at intellectual property business Qantm who revealed how they are using their private equity investment. We also discussed the wash-up from this month’s US election and the news that USPTO director Kathi Vidal is to leave her role early.

We also discussed the latest artificial intelligence trends and looked ahead to the coming weeks including the publication of our annual ‘Top 50 most influential people in IP’ list.

To listen to the episode, click here.