Answer the new questions in the digital age
Digitalization is changing the whole world, and at the bottom of the digital world is a huge amount of data that is constantly generated, aggregated, and calculated.
From a person's bank statements and social security documents, to an enterprise's business information and archives, a large amount of data needs to be stored and read.
Data storage and people's courts, two seemingly far apart fields, have actually intersected. On April 19 this year, the Tianjin No. 3 Intermediate People's Court released 17 typical intellectual property cases, one of which is closely related to data storage.
Who should this patent belong to?
Company F is a world-renowned optical drive manufacturer. A few years ago, Company F signed a technology licensing agreement with Company K to cooperate on related technologies.
In the process of cooperation, Company K came into contact with the relevant technical solutions and drawings of Company F, and one year later, applied for a utility model patent with the State Intellectual Property Office, titled "a storage box mechanism for photonic storage server", and was successfully authorized.
Upon learning of this situation, Company F was very angry, believing that the invention was developed by its own company, and that Company K had no right to use the fruits of intellectual labor without authorization. Therefore, Company F sued the court and requested a judgment that the patent right belonged to it.
"This is a patent ownership dispute. The focus of the dispute is who owns the patent rights in question. Judge Yao Hongbing, Judge of the Tianjin Intellectual Property Court of the Third Intermediate People's Court of Tianjin, was the undertaker of the case, and she quickly clarified the focus of the dispute in the case and set up a collegial panel to carry out the work.
It's all a breeze. As the homework became more and more in-depth, the collegial panel gradually realized the special value of this case.
"Data storage is a pillar industry in the technology field, and it can be divided into three main storage types according to different application needs and usage scenarios: cold storage, hot storage and warm storage."
"Cold storage refers to data that is accessed infrequently and needs to be stored for a long time. Hot storage refers to data that is frequently accessed and requires a quick response. Warm storage refers to data that is accessed occasionally, but also needs to respond quickly. ”
"Cold storage has a high market share in the data storage industry. Optical storage is the most important way of cold storage. The so-called optical storage, such as optical disc storage, has uneven pits on the optical disc, and the light shines on it with different reflections, and then converts it into 0 and 1 digital signals, which becomes optical storage. ”
By reading a large amount of technical literature, the members of the collegial panel have changed from "novices" who have no knowledge of data storage to "entry-level players" in this field.
Everyone agreed that this case involves the field of optical storage, which is of great significance to the development of the digital economy, and also has the function of adjudication guidance for the subsequent trial of similar cases, and all work should be carried out cautiously.
After carefully combing and comparing the claims of the patent in question, the drawings attached to the specification and the original technology research and development materials submitted by the plaintiff, the collegial panel concluded that the technical features recorded in the plaintiff's technology research and development materials were basically consistent with the patent in question.
"This conclusion can prove that the plaintiff already has the same technical solution as the patent in question before the date of application of the patent in question, but it is not sufficient to prove that the defendant's patent is a copy of the plaintiff's technical solution."
The collegial panel's thinking was clear, and it was necessary to continue to work to determine who should belong to this patent.
What is a Technical Investigator?
During the cooperation between Company F and Company K, there were many communication emails and technical authorization contracts, confidentiality agreements and other documents.
"Is it possible that these emails and documents contain information such as technical design drawings that are the same as those of the patent in question?" The collegial panel soon found another breakthrough.
However, in the face of such a large number of emails and documents, obscure technical terms and abstract design drawings, how can we accurately find out the key points of the patent information involved in the case?
Interlacing is like separating mountains, which is quite difficult for judges who are mostly from liberal arts. That's when a key figure came into the picture.
Si Yanlei is the director of the Vehicle Engineering Office of the Machinery Department of the Patent Examination Cooperation Tianjin Center of the Patent Office of the State Intellectual Property Office, and his other identity is that he is a technical investigator hired by the Tianjin Intellectual Property Court.
According to Zhang Yunling, President of the Tianjin Intellectual Property Court, the Tianjin Intellectual Property Court began to perform its duties externally in April 2019 and soon began to launch the technical investigator system.
"In addition to the Tianjin Center of the Examination Association, we have also established a cooperation mechanism with the Tianjin Intellectual Property Protection Center, the Binhai New Area Intellectual Property Protection Center, universities, etc., and currently employ 56 technical investigators, and have participated in more than 200 technical cases." As the initiator of this system, Zhang Yunling has done a lot of work to promote the improvement of this mechanism.
So what kind of officer is the technical investigator?
In the words of the judges, the technical investigator is like a think tank for them. For more difficult and complex technical cases, judges may apply to a technical investigator to assist in ascertaining technical facts. The technical investigator needs to participate in the investigation of the facts of the case, hold court discussions, and issue professional technical investigation opinions.
In this case, Si Yanlei was the "rescuer" who was called.
By analyzing the original R&D evidence submitted by the plaintiff and comparing it with the claims and drawings of the patent in question, Si Yanlei affirmed the conclusion reached by the collegial panel that the technical features recorded in the plaintiff's technical R&D materials were indeed basically consistent with the patent in question.
Then, Si Yanlei read and sorted out the communication emails, technical authorization contracts, confidentiality contracts and other documents between Company F and Company K one by one, and finally circled six key technical points to prove that there was indeed a fact that the plaintiff's employees sent drawings containing the same technical solutions as the patent in question to the defendant.
At the same time, through in-depth exchanges with the technical investigators, the collegial panel gained a deeper understanding of the patented technology in this case.
The information storage field involved in the case is one of the key core technology fields that have developed rapidly in recent years, and the patented technology involved in the case just overcame the shortcomings of the optical storage server at that time, such as the unreasonable structure layout of the storage box, the poor positioning accuracy of the box, and the low storage efficiency.
Since the defendant was unable to provide relevant evidence to prove that the inventor listed in the patent in question had made creative contributions to the substantive features of the patent in question, the court finally ruled that the patent in question belonged to the plaintiff, Company F.
What else can I do after the case is closed?
The verdict came down, and the happiest person was Chi Zhenhua, the plaintiff's entrusted agent ad litem, a lawyer at AllBright Law Firm.
"The court's judgment fully reflects the state's protection of new quality productivity and intellectual property rights, and makes my clients feel that 'true innovation' is 'truly protected' and 'high quality' is 'strictly protected' in specific cases." Every time this case is mentioned, Chi Zhenhua is very proud.
Beyond the judgment, the judges of the Tianjin Intellectual Property Court have always been clear that the value of a case is never just the case itself.
The collegial panel held that in the process of determining the actual inventor of the patented technology, this case provided judicial adjudication guidance in terms of the judgment of "substantive features" and "creative contributions", and the determination of the final ownership result.
Zhang Changshan, president of the Tianjin Third Intermediate People's Court, said: "This case involves the field of data storage and is a typical case for the protection of data storage technology. The final judgment of the case effectively protects the fundamental interests of inventors who have made substantial contributions and ensures the development of new quality productive forces. ”
Based on the above two reasons, the Tianjin Third Intermediate People's Court included this case in the white paper on the fifth anniversary of intellectual property protection released this year, further demonstrating the social value and guiding role of the case.
In Zhang Yunling's eyes, this case also has a social value: "The verdict of the case is conducive to guiding enterprises to establish a sense of independent innovation, cultivate independent innovation capabilities, and strengthen scientific and technological innovation, especially original scientific and technological innovation." ”
On June 26, Tianjin's "Trade Secret Protection Exchange Observation and Lecture Hall" was held in the Economic and Technological Development Zone. More than 80 people, including relevant persons in charge of Tianjin Municipal Market Supervision Commission and market supervision bureaus in various districts, courts, law firms, parks, etc., as well as representatives of enterprises, attended the event.
The judge of the Tianjin Intellectual Property Court took this case to the podium, hoping to further enhance the importance of independent innovation and the protection of trade secrets by using the case to explain the law.
The case between Company F and Company K is just one of the many data-related disputes that have entered the courts. Disputes involving data storage are only a small cross-section of the disputes that can arise in the digital age.
The digital age has arrived, and the adventure of the digital will not be easy. In the face of fierce market competition and a complex digital ecosystem, various challenges are coming one after another.
Data storage, data trading, digital finance, digital works...... Behind every freshman keyword may mean a new and intricate exam question.
How to answer the new exam questions in the digital age?
Standing on the stage of intellectual property adjudication in the new era, based on the current situation of vigorously developing new quality productivity, judges are starting one "brainstorming" after another, writing hard and forging ahead, and injecting surging momentum into high-quality development with high-quality justice.
Handle every case involving new quality productivity with heart
Commentator of this newspaper
The development of new productive forces is an inevitable requirement for the mainland's socialist modernization to enter a new stage of development, the only way to get rid of the traditional development mode and the development path of the traditional productive forces and achieve high-quality development, and an important task for the mainland to build a modern socialist power and realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) pointed out that the rule of law is an important guarantee for Chinese-style modernization. High-quality development is the primary task of building a modern socialist country in an all-round way. It is necessary to improve the system and mechanism for the development of new quality productive forces in accordance with local conditions, and improve the system for promoting the deep integration of the real economy and the digital economy.
The people's courts are important judicial organs of the state and an important force in the construction of the rule of law, shouldering important duties and missions and playing a unique role in the new era and new journey of building a modern socialist country in an all-round way. How to find its own functional positioning in the proposition of innovative development of developing new quality productive forces is an examination question of the times faced by the people's courts. The protection of intellectual property rights is the protection of innovation, and it is the proper meaning of the topic to handle every intellectual property case and every case involving new quality and productivity.
It is necessary to profoundly understand the connotation, characteristics, and development priorities of the new-quality productive forces, and profoundly understand and grasp the connotation and essence of the development of the new-quality productive forces. The judges of the Tianjin Intellectual Property Court of the Third Intermediate People's Court of Tianjin pay attention to strengthening the learning of technical knowledge in the fields involved in the case, keenly find that the cases are closely related to the development of new productive forces, and treat each trial link with a more prudent attitude, which effectively protects the legitimate rights and interests of innovative enterprises. The people's courts should be good at discovering the relationship between cases and new quality productivity, fully understand the strategic significance of developing new quality productivity, and prudently handle every case involving new quality productivity.
It is necessary to deepen reform and innovation in the field of intellectual property adjudication, encourage innovation with innovative methods, and protect innovation in innovative ways. The technical investigator system is an important innovation in the field of intellectual property justice in mainland China, aiming to improve the professionalism and efficiency of the trial of technical intellectual property cases. The Tianjin Intellectual Property Court of the Third Intermediate People's Court of Tianjin assisted judges in solving the difficult problem of determining technical facts by introducing technical investigators, quickly clarified the patent ownership relationship, and improved the quality of adjudication and trial efficiency. The people's courts should follow the characteristics and rules of intellectual property adjudication, boldly reform and innovate, and be good at exploring and trying various new systems and measures that are conducive to improving the quality and efficiency of intellectual property adjudication.
It is necessary to vigorously cultivate typical cases involving new quality productivity, and give play to the educational, evaluative, guided, and exemplary functions of judicial adjudication. Typical cases not only provide rich practical materials for academic research, but also provide a strong reference for solving practical problems. After the conclusion of the case, the Tianjin Intellectual Property Court of the Third Intermediate People's Court of Tianjin carefully wrote this case involving new quality productivity into a white paper, released it to the public as a typical case, and went into the enterprise to explain the law with the case, so that the case played a greater social value. The people's courts should give full play to the tremendous role of intellectual property adjudication in stimulating innovation and creativity and safeguarding fair competition, and provide clear, stable, and predictable legal boundaries and rules of conduct for innovative entities.
Source: People's Court Newspaper · 1 Edition