Theoretical Research And Empirical Analysis On Patent Pool

Presently many foreign enterprises take part in the market competition as a patent pool rather than a single enterprise. From the aspect of corporate strategy, their patent competition has undoubtedly reached a higher level. Recently, more and more international patent pools sued Chinese enterprises and restrained the development of pertinent Chinese industries severely, which forced Chinese enterprises to strengthen the cognition of patent pool. However, compared with the more and more important role played by patent pool, the research on patent pool made by foreign and Chinese scholars is still quite limited.This dissertation studies on patent pool with both theories of economics, management and law and empirical study based on typical cases and data information. The following are the main achievements of this dissertation:(1) Since existed literature has not made a deep and systemic study on the formation of patent pool and only points out the formation of patent pool is good for the reduction of transaction cost of patent license, this paper analyzes the formation of patent pool with economic theories. It advances that patent pool is a main solution to the patent anti-common tragedy, and brings forward that patent pool, which is formed by patentees for sharing their patents, has obvious characteristics of inter-firms and can be taken as a new institutional arrangement under the status when markets between enterprises are not complete and a supplement of market transaction of enterprises.(2) This paper analyzes two relevant problems of patent pool with economic methods. First, since there is no complete analysis on the issue whether patent pool would lead to antitrust or not, this paper studies the monopolization of patent pool and concludes as follows. Two patents in patent pool are competitive if the relation between them is two-way blocking, two patents whose relation is one-way blocking might be competitive, and whether substitute patents are competitive should be determined by the license fees demanded by the patent pool. Moreover, if there are invalid patents or patents which are not needed by licensees in patent pool and patent pool demands fee for those patens, licensees need to pay license fee which are not needed and this will lead to price ascend and blocking to market competition. Thus, patent pool will become the checkup subject of antitrust authority. Second, it advances the strategy which should be taken by patent pool when it negotiates with the potential licensees.(3) This paper makes some innovative jobs in this aspect and makes an empirical study on the operation modes of patent pool since existed research has only considered the formation or licensing of patent pool rather than the operation of patent pool wholly. It draws a conclusion on the two kinds of modes of patent pool's operation on technical standard and suggests on the mode which Chinese enterprises should adopt when they take advantage of patent pool to operate Chinese technical standard. Besides, it advances the mode which should be adopted when patent pools are constructed in biotechnological field according the characteristics of biotechnological field.(4) On the basis of the analysis on the two cases that patent pools are regulated by laws in America and Chinese Taiwan, this paper points out the strategy that China should adopt to cope with the patent abuse of international patent pools. Compared with existed literature, this study is more suitable for Chinese situation.