Niutang Chemical won the case in America! Win a transnational patent lawsuit
China Changzhou Net News "According to the procedures of the United States International Trade Commission (ITC), the products exported by Changzhou Niutang Chemical Factory Co., Ltd. to the United States did not violate Article 337 ..." On the morning of 24th, Wang Fangda, the general manager of the company, couldn't restrain his joy when he was interviewed exclusively by our reporter-at 4pm local time on 22nd, USA, ITC issued an announcement in official website, which was approved by the ITC administrative judge. Niutang Chemical Factory Co., Ltd. has also become the first enterprise in our city to win the US 337 intellectual property investigation.
The lawsuit came suddenly.
On April 6th, 2007, Taylor Company, which is headquartered in Britain and its production base is in the United States, submitted a request to the United States International Trade Commission in accordance with the US Customs Tax Law 1930, and initiated an investigation procedure on 26 sucralose enterprises in China (referred to as "337 investigation"), claiming that the production process of the above-mentioned companies infringed the intellectual property rights of its listed company-Niutang Chemical Factory Co., Ltd.
"When I received this email from America, I was suddenly shocked. I have been in business for more than 40 years and have never encountered such a thing. " Wang Fangda still remembers the scene at that time.
Faced with a lawyer's employment fee of more than 20 million yuan, Wang Fangda, who calmed down, decided to actively respond to the lawsuit without being sure of winning the case. "If you don't respond to the lawsuit, it is equivalent to acknowledging the other party's allegations. The company will not only lose the newly opened American market, but also face high claims, which is not enough to compensate all the family businesses founded by Niutang Chemical for 40 years."
Sucralose of origin
The reporter learned in the interview that sucralose was certified by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). So far, it is recognized as the safest, healthiest, calorie-free and fat-free sweetener in the world. Not only is it delicious and sweet, but it won't make people fat. It is good news for patients with obesity, diabetes, hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. In Europe and America, it has become a regular family food, and it is also widely used in ice cream, drinks, biscuits and other foods, and can also be used as a seasoning for dishes. At present, the annual demand of the global market is 4.6 billion yuan, increasing at a rate of 20% every year.
In 2002, Dr. Cai Ya, deputy general manager of Niutang Chemical Plant, formed a six-person research team, consulted a large number of domestic and foreign literatures, and after many hard experiments, it cost more than RMB 100. At the beginning of 2004, domestic sucralose was successfully developed independently. In 2005, it exported 6 tons to the American market, and in 2006, the export volume increased to more than 20 tons. Due to the intervention of Niutang Chemical Plant, the price of sucralose in the American market has dropped from US$ 300-400 per kilogram when the former Tailai Company monopolized it to US$ 0/50-160 per kilogram at present.
The insiders believe that when China enterprises master relevant core technologies and enter this market, Tailai Company will no longer occupy the oligopoly advantage, and the gap with the goal of becoming a leader in this field is getting bigger and bigger. In this case, in order to resist the encroachment of China enterprises in the American market and maintain their inherent market share, it is not surprising to apply for 337 investigation.
Niutang Chemical won the case.
Dr. Cai Ya, who participated in this survey all the time, said that according to ITC's regulations, from April 2007, the company spent three months carefully preparing the relevant materials for responding to the lawsuit. On September 10 of that year, Cai Ya and the lawyers and experts hired by the Chinese side flew to Washington to be interviewed by the lawyers hired by the other company for three days and nearly 24 hours. In June of that year 10, six lawyers, experts and cameramen from the other company came to Niutang Chemical Plant for field investigation. "They investigated it in great detail, even the dust on the wall and underground was spared, hoping to find some' evidence', but we were not worried at all, because our craft was totally different from that in Tailai." Cai Ya said that after three days of investigation, the lawyers and experts of the other side not only expressed satisfaction with the active cooperation of Niutang Chemical Plant, but also gave a thumbs-up to its original production technology.
Just after the Spring Festival in February this year, Cai Ya and the lawyers and experts hired flew to Washington again to attend the ITC trial. "I went to court for the first time in my life and entered the court in the United States, but I am not nervous at all, because the facts will prove everything." Cai Ya said that the trial lasted for two days, and he answered questions from opposing lawyers and judges for an hour and a half. On February 29, the process of responding to the lawsuit was all over.
On the afternoon of 22nd local time in the United States, ITC issued an announcement in official website as scheduled, and forwarded the preliminary ruling results through American lawyers hired by enterprises.
Niutang Chemical won the case!
World-famous media reported this event at the first time. The British BBC pointed out that Tailai will face new competition from China with the title "Tailai Company loses the case, Tianqi".
The New York Times reported in a prominent page that "Tailai Company lost the case against China manufacturers, which has a great impact on the future development of the enterprise".
On the same day, the stock of Tailai Company fell 12%.
Subvert the market structure
A stone hanging in my heart finally landed. Sitting opposite the reporter, Wang Fang straightened up and said, "Spring is coming, and hope is just around the corner." He revealed to reporters that in 2007, due to the lawsuit of 18 months, the amount of sucralose exported by enterprises to the American market dropped to 15 tons. "But this will definitely not affect the accelerated development of Niutang Chemical." Wang Fangda revealed that during the lawsuit, Niutang Chemical continued to accelerate effective investment. In June this year 165438+ 10, a new sucralose production line with a total investment of 45 million yuan and an annual output of 250 tons will be completed and put into operation. By 2009, the new sales will be 200 million yuan, and the total sales of enterprises is expected to reach 900 million yuan.
According to industry analysts, according to the planning of Niutang Chemical, the export to the US market will reach 50 tons this year and will jump to 200 tons next year, ranking first in Asia in terms of output and market share. In the next few years, the global sucralose market structure may undergo fundamental changes.
This person also pointed out that the results of this survey will play a positive demonstration role for other enterprises. If China's export products are repeatedly investigated by "337" in the international market, once it spreads to the main export markets, it will cause a major blow to the whole export-dependent industry. Therefore, private enterprises should not take passive measures in foreign-related litigation, but should be good at using international practices and legal means to protect their rights and interests from infringement.