Wilus Seeks First US SEP Injunction in 20 Years
Technology firm Wilus is seeking the first standards-essential patent (SEP) injunction in the United States in two decades. The legal action targets ASUS and Askey WiFi routers, asserting infringement of WiFi 6 patents that are part of the Sisvel patent pool. Wilus is claiming irreparable harm to justify the injunction.
- The last known standards-essential patent (SEP) injunction granted by a U.S. district court was in the *CSIRO v. Buffalo* case in 2007, which also involved WiFi patents. - Since the 2006 Supreme Court decision in *eBay Inc. v. MercExchange*, a plaintiff must pass a four-factor test to obtain a permanent injunction, including proving "irreparable harm" that cannot be compensated by monetary damages. This is a high bar for SEP holders who have committed to licensing their technology on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms. - Wilus, a South Korea-based R&D company, is a founding member of the Sisvel patent pool for WiFi 6 technology, alongside Huawei, Philips, MediaTek, and SK Telecom. The pool offers a standard license at a rate of $0.60 per unit. - This legal action in the U.S. follows a related case in Germany, where the Munich Regional Court granted Wilus an injunction against ASUS for infringing a WiFi 6 patent. That court found that the licensing offers made by both Wilus and the Sisvel pool were FRAND. - Wilus has filed similar lawsuits in the Eastern District of Texas against other major technology companies, including HP and Samsung, over WiFi 6 patents. - Founded in 2012, Wilus holds over 600 patents in its cellular portfolio alone and has submitted over 700 technical contributions to standards bodies like 3GPP and IEEE. - SEP-related litigation in the U.S. has seen a significant increase, with annual case filings rising from 118 in 2014 to 223 in 2024, partly driven by an increase in activity from Patent Assertion Entities (PAEs).
