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Übersicht · Eingereicht: 13. Dez. 2023

UPC_CFI_471/2023

Method for presenting rate-adaptive streams

VerletzungHauptverletzungsklageMannheim LDInfringementCase Closed
Abdeckung: Teilweise.Begründung teilweise extrahiert — einige Abschnitte können unvollständig sein.
Zusammenfassung in einfacher Sprache

DISH Technologies and Sling TV sued AYLO entities at the Mannheim Local Division for infringement of EP 2 479 680, a patent covering adaptive bitrate HTTP video streaming. The court dismissed the infringement action finding neither literal nor equivalent infringement, because AYLO's streaming systems did not perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same effect as the claimed means; the revocation counterclaim was partially successful, with the patent maintained in amended form under Auxiliary Request 12 at a dispute value of EUR 20,000,000.

Angenommene Argumente
Was das Gericht akzeptiert hat — nach Partei.
  • defendants' adaptive bitrate HTTP streaming systems do not literally infringe the claims of EP 2 479 680

    BeklagterRechtsgrundlage: Art. 25 UPCA

    Hinweis: The court dismissed the infringement claim after finding no literal infringement.

  • no doctrine-of-equivalents infringement under any member state's equivalence doctrine applicable to the relevant infringing acts, because the alleged substitute means do not perform substantially the same function to achieve substantially the same effect

    BeklagterRechtsgrundlage: Art. 25 UPCA; equivalence doctrine of applicable member states; Mannheim LD decisions of 11 March 2025

    Hinweis: Headnote 1: the court held that equivalent infringement is excluded under all member states' equivalence tests if the substituted means lacks technical-functional equivalence (not substantially same function / substantially same effect); followed Brussels LD decision of 17 January 2025.

  • there is no legal interest in a counterclaim seeking revocation of dependent claims alone without attacking the independent claim they refer back to

    KlägerRechtsgrundlage: R. 30.1 VerfO

    Hinweis: Headnote 2: the court held that revocation of dependent sub-claims in isolation, without revoking the independent claim to which they refer, generally lacks legal interest because dependent claims do not expand the scope of the patent.

  • patent maintained in amended form under Auxiliary Request 12

    BeklagterRechtsgrundlage: Art. 65(3) UPCA

    Hinweis: The revocation counterclaim succeeded in part - patent not fully revoked but maintained in amended form; infringement costs borne by claimant, revocation costs by respondent.

Zurückgewiesene Argumente
Was das Gericht nicht akzeptiert hat — und warum.
  • defendants' streaming services literally or equivalently infringe EP 2 479 680

    KlägerRechtsgrundlage: Art. 25 UPCA; doctrine of equivalents

    Begründung: No literal infringement found; no equivalent infringement because the substitute means in AYLO's systems do not achieve substantially the same function/effect as the claimed features.

  • full revocation of EP 2 479 680 including all auxiliary requests

    BeklagterRechtsgrundlage: Art. 65 UPCA; Art. 138 EPC

    Begründung: Patent was maintained in amended form under Auxiliary Request 12; full revocation was not ordered.

  • late disclosure of video file encoding information should be ordered under R. 191 RoP

    KlägerRechtsgrundlage: R. 191 RoP

    Begründung: Disclosure refused because validity was uncertain, defendants had already provided information in their defence submissions, and claimant had not exhausted other available information sources; also potentially a fishing expedition.

Hinweise zur Anspruchsauslegung

The patent (EP 2 479 680) claims a method for adaptive bitrate HTTP streaming where a media player requests sequential file segments over TCP connections, generates a performance factor based on network conditions, and makes shift decisions based on that factor. Key disputed constructions concerned: (1) the role and function of 'servers' in the claim (whether CDN servers qualify as claimed servers); (2) the meaning of 'bitrate' in the context of the specific performance-factor algorithm; (3) whether equivalent implementations using CDN architectures satisfy claim elements directed at origin-server storage and retrieval patterns.