In a decision that could have broad ramifications, a Tokyo court yesterday ruled a company that employed the inventor of the lucrative blue light-emitting diode, or LED, is the rightful owner of its patent.
Shuji Nakamura, now a professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, sued Nichia Corp for ?2 billion (US$16 million), saying he was not sufficiently compensated for the profit his invention brought the company.
His claim was given a setback after the Tokyo District Court ruled that Nichia is the rightful owner of the patent. The broader ruling on whether he can claim any portion of the profits from the invention will be made on Nov. 19, court spokesman Akira Idemoto said.
Japanese law upholds the right of the individual inventor, in principle. In practice, Japan has been relatively weak on the protection of such individual rights when compared to the US.
Nichia had no immediate comment on the ruling. Nakamura was scheduled to give a news conference later in the day.
The patent for the blue light-emitting diode, or LED, which consumes less energy than regular light bulbs, helps make more than ?50 billion (US$407 million) a year in revenue for Nichia Corp, the small company in southwestern Japan where Nakamura worked for 20 years. Besides his paycheck of ?10 million (US$81,000) a year, Nakamura said he got only ?20,000 (US$160) for each of the dozens of patents on inventions he developed at Nichia.
He quit Nichia in 1999 and took the job with the Materials Department at the University of California, Santa Barbara the following year.
His suit has been closely followed because it underscores the broader issue of where the line on intellectual property rights should be drawn when an inventor clashes with his or her employer.
Many also see Nakamura as something of a champion of the common worker.
Nakamura, 47, claims that while at Nichia, he toiled long hours alone in his lab, enduring ridicule, accidental explosions and bureaucratic red tape.
UPDATED (3:40pm): A suspected gas explosion at a shopping mall in Taichung this morning has killed four people and injured 20 others, as emergency responders continue to investigate. The explosion occurred on the 12th floor of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi in Situn District (西屯) at 11:33am. One person was declared dead at the scene, while three people were declared deceased later after receiving emergency treatment. Another 20 people sustained major or minor injuries. The Taichung Fire Bureau said it received a report of the explosion at 11:33am and sent rescuers to respond. The cause of the explosion is still under investigation, it said. The National Fire
ALL-IN-ONE: A company in Tainan and another in New Taipei City offer tours to China during which Taiwanese can apply for a Chinese ID card, the source said The National Immigration Agency and national security authorities have identified at least five companies that help Taiwanese apply for Chinese identification cards while traveling in China, a source said yesterday. The issue has garnered attention in the past few months after YouTuber “Pa Chiung” (八炯) said that there are companies in Taiwan that help Taiwanese apply for Chinese documents. Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) last week said that three to five public relations firms in southern and northern Taiwan have allegedly assisted Taiwanese in applying for Chinese ID cards and were under investigation for potential contraventions of the Act Governing
ACCOUNTABILITY: The incident, which occured at a Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store in Taichung, was allegedly caused by a gas explosion on the 12th floor Shin Kong Group (新光集團) president Richard Wu (吳昕陽) yesterday said the company would take responsibility for an apparent gas explosion that resulted in four deaths and 26 injuries at Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang Store in Taichung yesterday. The Taichung Fire Bureau at 11:33am yesterday received a report saying that people were injured after an explosion at the department store on Section 3 of Taiwan Boulevard in Taichung’s Situn District (西屯). It sent 56 ambulances and 136 paramedics to the site, with the people injured sent to Cheng Ching Hospital’s Chung Kang Branch, Wuri Lin Shin Hospital, Taichung Veterans General Hospital or Chung
STAY WARM: Sixty-three nontraumatic incidents of OHCA were reported on Feb. 1, the most for a single day this year, the National Fire Agency said A total of 415 cases of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) occurred this month as of Saturday, data from the National Fire Agency showed as doctors advised people to stay warm amid cold weather, particularly people with cardiovascular disease. The Central Weather Administration yesterday issued a low temperature warning nationwide except for Penghu County, anticipating sustained lows of 10°C or a dip to below 6°C in Nantou, Yilan, Hualien and Taitung counties, as well as areas north of Yunlin County. The coldest temperature recorded in flat areas of Taiwan proper yesterday morning was 6.4°C in New Taipei City’s Shiding District (石碇). Sixty-three nontraumatic OHCA