' Akamai and the Question on Joint Infringement on Method Claims in the Supreme Court | MTTLR

Akamai and the Question on Joint Infringement on Method Claims in the Supreme Court

On April 30, 2014, the Supreme Court of the United States will hear opening arguments [1] for a landmark case found in patent law casebooks, Akamai Technologies, Inc. v. Limelight Networks, Inc., whereby the Federal Circuit, sitting en banc, held in a 6-5 ruling that a defendant may be held liable for inducing patent infringement under 35 U.S.C. § 271(b) when no direct infringement occurred under 35 U.S.C. § 271(a). [2] 35 U.S.C. § 271 states:

  • “(a) … whoever without authority makes, uses, offers to sell, or sells any patented invention, within the United States or imports into the United States any patented invention during the term of the patent therefor, infringes the patent.
  • (b) Whoever actively induces infringement of a patent shall be liable as an infringer…”

The Federal Circuit overruled its own precedence set in BMC Resources, Inc. v. Paymentech, L.P., which had previously held that induced infringement requires a single party to commit all steps of a method constituting direct infringement under § 271(a).  In Akamai, neither Limelight nor its customers performed all of the steps, but nevertheless Limelight was found liable because Akamai and its customers jointly performed all steps.  The court reasoned that a party who actually participates in performing the infringing method should be “more culpable than another one who does not perform any steps” but instead induces another to do so. [3]

Arguments supporting Judge Newman’s 35-page dissent include imposing an unfair obligation on businesses to speculate on potential future uses by a third-party buyer or user, the increased discovery costs to an already expensive procedure, and the potential for erroneously imposing liability on supplying non-infringing products and services. [4]  This case is of interest for inventions involving multiple steps, in particular the internet software and hardware industry, as demonstrated by the amicus briefs submitted by technological giants, such as Apple, the Google, Oracle, Red Hat, SAP, CISCO, Xilinx, Altera, HTC, SmugMug, weatherford, the CTIA, Facebook, Inc. and LinkedIn Corporation, The Wireless Association, the Consumer Electronics Association, MetroPCS Wireless, and many others.[5]

Many people will be listening next Wednesday on how the Supreme Court will interpret the word “whoever” in the statute and balance these important policy goals.

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