Seoul Semic files patent infringement suit agains Conrad

Seoul Semiconductor has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against European retailer of electronic products, Conrad Electronic S.E. The lawsuit was filed in Germany in the District Court of Manheim.

This litigation is the second one involving mobile phone products following the litigation against Conrad for infringement of backlight unit LEDs filed in July. According to the complaint, LEDs for flashlights of mobile phones sold by Conrad are infringing Seoul’s patent, a press release reads. The patented technology in this litigation is “the Roughened Light Extraction Surface” technology that efficiently extracts light emitted from the internal LED structure by treating LED chip surfaces, thereby significantly improving light intensity and brightness – a fundamental technology of LED chip fabrication. This patent has already been the subject of an injunction from a German court in December 2018 against LED products from a global LED manufacturer. The patented technology has now been registered in 12 major countries, including the United States, Europe and Asia, and has been widely used for automobile headlamps, UV and outdoor lighting, as well as cell phone flashlights. Seoul has already warned manufacturers of global mobile phones to cease using LED products suspected of infringement. Seoul investigates mobile phones incorporating such products and will consider any legal enforcement necessary if such infringement continues unabated, the press release continues. Seoul has already filed three patent infringement lawsuits against distributors of suspected infringing products in Europe alone and plans to expand its enforcement further given the confirmation of its technology from the German courts, where Seoul has obtained permanent injunctions against infringement of Seoul’s patents.

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