Information Technologies

Over the last two decades, communications and information technologies have seen the highest growth rates in terms of all annual patent filings. The sector is dominated by standardization bodies such as ITU, IEEE, and ETSI for telecommunication standards (WiFi, LTE, 5G and 6G) and MPEG for audio and video formats.

Patents result from the industry’s implementation of their technical contributions into such standards. Market newcomers are forced to take licenses from the patentees in order to avoid patent infringement. In contrast to other areas of technology, evidence for patent infringement can be taken from the technical standard documentation itself (provided the accused product fulfills a certain standard). Patent litigation cases in these areas have dominated German litigation courts in recent years.

Sustainable patent protection requires a successful patent strategy. Such a strategy has to take into account current and future standards alike. To this end, attorneys at Grünecker keep up to date with the latest developments in the relevant technologies and standards.

Our attorneys have been representing market leaders in information technology for decades. Many of our attorneys are not only involved in patent prosecution matters, but over the years have also accumulated great experience in patent enforcement. Such first-hand litigation expertise flows back into daily prosecution work and, conversely, technical knowledge from prosecution enriches litigation. As our client, you reap the benefits of both approaches. Our expertise also covers the overlap of patent and competition law, such as in SEP/FRAND cases.