What are the three situations in which the patentee is forced to license?

Compulsory license is a kind of law that the state fails to fulfill the patentee's obligation to implement. Compulsory licensing is relative to voluntary licensing. It means that whether the patentee is willing or not, for the benefit of the country and the public, others must be allowed to exploit the patent in accordance with state regulations. According to the provisions of Chapter VI of the Patent Law, there are three situations in which compulsory license occurs:

Compulsory license for patent abuse refers to the fact that a unit with the conditions for implementation requests the patentee of an invention or utility model for permission to exploit its patent on reasonable terms, but fails to obtain the license within a reasonable time, and the Patent Office may grant a compulsory license to exploit the patent.

Compulsory licensing of subordinate patents A subordinate patent refers to a patent whose implementation depends on the implementation of the patent. Because the subordinate patentee cannot exploit the previous patent without the right to exploit it, the subordinate patent right of the latter invention or utility model, which is more advanced in technology, may be granted a compulsory license to exploit the previous patent. According to the principle of reciprocity, the patentee of the former patent may also apply for a compulsory license to exploit the latter patent.

National compulsory license refers to the compulsory license granted by the patent office when there is an emergency or extraordinary situation in the country or for the purpose of public interest.

It should be noted that although the grant of compulsory license is independent of the wishes of the patentee, the licensee should still pay the patentee a reasonable royalty in accordance with state regulations.