Patent Infringement Liability Determination In Cloud Computing Environment

With the development of cloud computing technology,patent infringement cases in the cloud computing environment are also increasing.Because cloud computing has the characteristics of virtualization and multi-tenancy,patent infringement cases in the cloud computing environment usually exhibit the characteristics of patent infringement without borders,multi-step separation infringement and multi-subject separation.In the process of implementing infringement,multiple entities implement different steps.Although they add up to a complete process,due to the traditional theory of China's patent direct infringement determination rules,China's indirect infringement system is still based on direct infringement.The theory of infringement is vague.These make it difficult to identify the patent infringement liability in the cloud computing environment,and the patentee's interests are difficult to protect.The United States was the first country to develop cloud computing technology,and patent infringement disputes in the cloud computing environment appeared very early.This paper combines the US judicial case to analyze the method of US courts to resolve the separation of infringement.The Akamai case in the United States is called the first case of patent infringement in the cloud computing environment.This article focuses on the application of the above rules in the Akamai case.The Akamai case has innovated to induce infringement rules,and the establishment of indirect infringement does not require direct infringement.Later,the US Supreme Court sent back the retrial,and the CAFC proposed new control and command rules to make the patent infringement recognition rules return to the tradition.The United States is to avoid the uncertainty of patent infringement.However,the US courts still try to propose new rules to expand the scope of protection of patent rights in order to promote their economic development.China's cloud computing technology started late,but with the emergence of Xidian Jietong v.Sony,China should pay attention to the research on patent infringement rules in the cloud computing environment.The defendant in the case was Sony and its clients.They each implemented different steps in the patented technology involved,and the Beijing Intellectual Property Court and the Beijing High Court made the opposite judgment.The Sony case is similar to the US Akamai trial process,and can be used to learn from the US patent infringement thinking in the cloud computing environment.This paper believes that China still needs to adhere to the traditional patent infringement identification rules,and indirect infringement should be based on direct infringement.Learn the new rules of “control and command” in the United States,Introduce Article 12 of the Supreme Court Patent Infringement Judicial Interpretation(1)to solve the dilemma of patent infringement liability determination in the cloud computing environment.