Seoul Semiconductor Sues Kmart over Patent Infringement

Korean LED manufacturer Seoul Semiconductor has filed a lawsuit against Kmart, claiming the American retail franchise was selling LED products that violated its patents, reported The Korea Herald.

Seoul Semiconductor accused Kmart for infringing eight patents that cover high Color Rendering Index (CRI), phosphor related combinations, LED epitaxal growth, LED chip production, and multi-chip mounting technology, omni-directional LED lamp and Acrich multi-junction technology.

The LED company said the products being sold in Kmart infringed eight of its patents including high CRI, or color rendering index, enhancement with phosphor combinations, LED epitaxial growth, LED chip fabrication, multi-chip mounting technology, omni-directional LED lamp technology and Acrich multi junction technology.

“We have invested tremendous resources for environment-friendly technology innovation for 25 years,” said Nam Ki-bum, vice president of Seoul Semiconductor’s lighting business department.

The allegedly patent infringed products include those that feature LED patents filed by Nobel laureate Nakamura Shuji and fellow UC Santa Barbara colleague Steven DenBaars. LED filament bulbs were also included in the patent lawsuit, a product that has attracted widespread consumer attention in the U.S. as more consumers replace traditional incandescent bulbs with LEDs.

According to the report, Seoul Semiconductor has won 50 suits against competitors, including Taiwanese tech company AOT in 2003. The company has also clinched a patent lawsuit victory against the U.S. based LED TV manufacturer Craig Electronics last year, and a jury verdict against Japanese lens maker Enplas in 2016, which demanded Enplas to pay a compensation of US $4 million over LED patent infringement.

The LED manufacturer said it is working with U.S.-based law firm Latham & Watkins to work with Larry Gotts, who lead the counsel of Seoul Semiconductor’s lawsuit against Enplas.

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