Patent litigation from Europe to China

The EU Commission has announced that a lawsuit has been filed within the WTO structure due to China's practices towards high-tech sectors such as telecommunications.

In the statement, it was pointed out that China has severely restricted the protection of patent rights of EU companies with technologies such as 3G, 4G, and 5G.

Pointing out that China's own mobile phone manufacturers allow EU companies to use patents illegally or without compensation, the statement said that patent holders who went to court outside of China regarding the issue faced significant fines in China.

In the statement, it was noted that EU companies were pressured by China to accept license fees below market prices.

Pointing out that China's practices deprive European technology companies of seeking their rights, the statement said that Chinese courts made decisions that would prevent EU companies from protecting their rights and threatened European companies with heavy fines.

In the statement, it was stated that the EU made many attempts to resolve the issue with China, but these were inconclusive.

Pointing out that the EU finds this situation contrary to the WTO Trade-Related Intellectual Property Agreement (TRIPS), it was stated that for this reason, the EU decided to initiate legal proceedings against China in the WTO.