German firm Varta AG is taking legal action against Chinese battery manufacturers for alleged patent infringements on its lithium-ion coin cells.
The German company has made the allegations about Chinese competitors EVE Energy and MIC-Power based in South China’s Guangdong Province.
The company found batteries being used in Samsung’s wireless ear-bud headphones had infringed on its patents.
The discovery, made in mid-December during regular competition investigations, has prompted Varta’s lawyers to insist retailers take the Chinese batteries out of their supply.
A Varta statement read: “Following this discovery, we immediately took legal action and issued warnings to retailers and manufacturers. We reserve the right to take further legal action.
“The company will continue to monitor competitive products on an ongoing basis and take action against patent infringements.”
Chinese newspaper Global Times has reported that representatives from both Eve Energy and Mic-Power have denied the allegations. The companies had not responded to BEST at the time of publication.
The news comes as the Varta AG Group, decided to ‘significantly’ expand production capacity as high customer demand for lithium-ion batteries in a market experiencing annual growth of around 3%.
The firm’s executive board is to increase production capacity from its originally planned 150 million cells per year from 2022, to 200 million cells per year, with implementation scheduled for the end of 2021.
Herbert Schein, CEO of Varta AG, said: “Our future clearly lies in the field of lithium-ion technology. Here, as an innovation leader, we set the industry standards. This has allowed us to gain unique competitive advantages, which we safeguard through patents and rapid advances in innovation. With the accelerated expansion of our production capacities announced today, we are not only continuing to build on our strong market position, but are also creating further 600 new jobs in our region.”
Varta owns relevant industrial property rights in Europe, the US, China and Japan and pursues all patent infringements, including by legal means where necessary.
Subscribe to BEST here to receive your copy of the latest magazine that includes a look at patent law.
