Infringement

Infringement is the violation of an exclusive right granted to the owner of intellectual property (IP), such as a patent, trademark, or trade secret. It occurs when a third party performs an act covered by these exclusive rights without the owner's permission. For instance, under Taiwan's Trade Secrets Act (Article 10), infringement includes acquiring a trade secret through improper means or disclosing/using it without consent. In the context of ISO 31000, infringement is a critical operational and legal risk that must be systematically identified, assessed, and treated to safeguard innovation, brand value, and market position.

In enterprise risk management, addressing infringement involves a proactive, three-step process. Step 1: IP Audit and Risk Identification. Companies systematically inventory their IP assets and analyze their products to identify risks of infringing on others' rights. Step 2: Freedom-to-Operate (FTO) Analysis. Before a new product launch, a thorough search of existing patents and trademarks is conducted to assess infringement likelihood. This informs decisions to design around, license, or challenge existing IP. Step 3: Monitoring and Response. This involves establishing mechanisms to monitor competitors and a clear protocol for responding to infringement claims. A global tech firm reduced its potential litigation exposure by 70% by integrating FTO analysis into its R&D stage-gate process.

Taiwanese enterprises, particularly SMEs, face three key challenges in managing infringement risks. First, limited resources, including a lack of in-house legal experts and budget for patent databases. Mitigation involves leveraging government resources from the Taiwan Intellectual Property Office (TIPO). Second, a disconnect between R&D and legal departments. The solution is to embed IP risk assessment into the R&D process through regular cross-functional reviews, a priority action that can be established within 3-6 months. Third, navigating the complexity of international IP laws. To overcome this, companies should prioritize FTO analysis for key target markets and utilize international filing systems like the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

Winners Consulting specializes in Infringement for Taiwan enterprises, delivering compliant management systems within 90 days. Free consultation: https://winners.com.tw/contact