Do you think Japanese patents are difficult to use? I visited Chinese IT companies early this month. A person in charge of licensing said Japanese patents are difficult to use, as well as Korean patents. Because the specification, claims and other documents for Japanese patents are written in Japanese language, he is not sure if he understands the patent correctly. Another person from a different company explained how they handle the inventions created in their Japan office. They prepare patent documents in English to file a PCT application. So, they can review the English documents directly, not the translations. This would be not special to this company. For companies which prioritize […]

2018年にノーベル生理学・医学賞を受賞した日本人科学者の本庶佑氏が、日本の製薬会社である小野薬品工業と特許使用料をめぐって争っています。背景 報道によれば、2006年に、本庶氏と小野薬品工業は、がん治療薬「オプジーボ」（一般名：ニボルマブ）に応用されたPD-1に関する特許のライセンス契約を締結しました。しかし、オプジーボの開発が進んでいた2011年に、本庶氏がロイヤリティの引き上げを要求しましたが、交渉は期待したようには進みませんでした。そこで、本庶氏は、2019年4月10日に、世間の支持を得るために、契約の背景や概要を公表するという手段に出ました。[…]

It is reported that a consortium called “InnovationTech Consortium” launches in Japan on April 15 2019. In this consortium, the member companies share and exchange information on technologies and know-hows that lead to new businesses. Reportedly, more than 40 Japanese companies will participate in the consortium at first, which include Toyota, All Nippon Airways, Asahi Group, ITOCHU, Takeda Pharmaceutical, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking, and Dentsu, which are all Japanese leading companies. They expect 100 companies to join the consortium by 2020. Also, they will not prevent their competitors from joining the consortium. In the consortium, a company shares a business model and/or technologies under consideration, and other companies having an interest in […]