In its decision dated September 19, 2017 (file No. X ZR 114 /15) the German Federal Supreme Court (BGH) ruled in favour of Tiama.
It was declared that the German part of the Tiama’s European Patent 1 147 405 is valid and can be opposed to infringes.
The Düsseldorf’s civil court had earlier taken a final and binding decision on infringement.
The validity of the patent had been questioned by Heye International. Germany’s highest patent court found that:
· the patent fulfilled the requirements of a novelty and inventive step; and
· the challenges brought against the patent were unfounded.
The judgment is the latest episode in Tiama’s efforts to defend its intellectual property.
Tiama said: “With the validity of this key patent confirmed, Tiama will keep on seeking damage claims against users of this technology.
“Tiama will continue to vigourously defend its intellectual property portfolio. We will protect the company’s R&D efforts and hope that continued enforcement will eventually discourage further competitors from infringing our proprietary patented technologies.”
In response, Heye International said the product was no longer on the market and that its product strategy remained unchanged. Its new product, Ranger 2, camera check detection system is now fully available on the market.
