Tridonic wins patent infringement lawsuit against HTC distributor Ingram

The subject of this legal action is the sale of smartphones manufactured by HTC of Taiwan. The ruling has confirmed that the LEDs used as backlights in the displays of smartphones manufactured by HTC Taiwan make use of Tridonic’s patented technology.
 

While Ingram has filed an appeal, Tridonic shares the courts view and has filed similar patent infringement lawsuits at the District Court of Munich I against the companies HTC Corporation, HTC Europe Co. Ltd. and HTC Germany GmbH.

Together with Toyoda Gosei, Ltd. in Japan, Leuchtstoffwerk Breitungen GmbH and Litec GbR in Germany, Tridonic Jennersdorf GmbH makes up the B.O.S.E. Consortium, which owns basic patents for the technology generating white light with blue LEDs and yellow silicate phosphors. HTC is working with various Chinese manufacturers for their displays. Tridonic initiated patent lawsuits 2017 against telecommunication retailer of HTC, S-KON eKontor24 GmbH. Since District Court of Munich I affirmed Tridonic’s arguments, the parties agreed on a settlement for reasons of legal certainty and prompt settlement of the dispute. Ingram is another HTC smartphone supplier identified by Tridonic, and thus Tridonic also initiated a patent infringement lawsuit at the District Court of Munich I against Ingram. The legal proceedings against Ingram at District Court of Munich I concerned the infringement of two EP patents. After the court has had separated the two proceedings, court ordered Ingram in both proceedings to cease and desist, to provide information, to render accounts, to recall the patent infringing products from the distribution channels and to destroy infringing items. In its judgment, the court also stated that Ingram must compensate the patent holders for all damages incurred and to be incurred to date due to the patent infringements. Ingram has appealed against the decisions. Since Tridonic has won every single case in this matter, Tridonic expects the appeal to fail.

Tridonic invests heavily into technology in its research and development centers in Austria, China, Portugal, UK, Switzerland, and Serbia and proves with its more than 2,600 patents to be one of the leading companies in lighting technology. Tridonic stands for fair use of technology and makes its technology available to the industry through licensing agreements and is part of various industry consortiums for joint technology development. One of them, the B.O.S.E. Consortium, offers licensing arrangements to make this white LED technology available to the LED industry, and has already concluded licensing agreements with more than 40 LED manufacturers worldwide.