Mitsubishi Chemical Wins Judgement in Red Phosphor Patent Infringement Litigation against Intematix of U.S. and 2 Chinese Companies

Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation (MCC; Head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Masayuki Waga) today announced that on July 31, in the first hearing on the case in the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court, it obtained a judgement recognizing the infringement of its patent for red phosphor in China by the defendants, U.S.-based Intematix Corporation, its affiliate in China, Intematix Suzhou Lighting Co., Ltd., and its sales agency, GrandLux Optoelectronics Co., Ltd. (collectively, “Intematix and two companies”).

On January 23, 2015, MCC filed a suit in the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court alleging that products of Intematix and two companies infringed on the patent (No. ZL201110066517.7*) for red phosphor, owned by MCC and the National Institute for Materials Science. MCC sought an injunction on the production and sale of phosphors in China and damages in this litigation. The court recognized MCC’s claim and adjudicated an injunction to the aforementioned Intematix and two companies’ infringement action and to order Intematix and two companies to pay a total of 2 million yuan (approximately 30 million yen) as compensation.

China is the world’s largest producer of LED packages, and also boasts the largest production of white LED packages, the main application for red phosphor. Winning this litigation and having the court recognize MCC’s claim and order the injunction and compensation for damage to Intematix and two companies, is the matter of great importance to MCC, which has made significant investment and worked to develop this business in a proactive manner for many years. The judgement is also important not only for the phosphor industry, but also for the entire white LED industry, and MCC believes it will lead to sound growth and consistent orders in both industries.

Meanwhile, MCC filed a patent infringement suit, based on the corresponding patent in South Korea, against Intematix and its sales agency in the nation on December 20, 2011, and on April 2, 2015, obtained a judgement recognizing the infringement of its patent by Intematix and its sales agency. The court adjudicated an injunction on the import and sale in South Korea of the Intematix phosphors subject to the suit.

MCC shall not overlook any party infringing on any of MCC’s intellectual property, and will take every appropriate measure.

*This is the basic patent related to nitride-type red phosphor known as CASN, SCASN, or 1113 phosphor, whose general formula is CaAlSiN3:Eu, (Sr,Ca) AlSiN3:Eu, etc. This type of red phosphor is the most broadly used in white LEDs due to its high luminance and reliability. Regarding CASN, SCASN, or 1113 phosphor, MCC owns numerous relevant patents other than the above patent. The patents are registered in Japan, the U.S., Korea, and Taiwan in addition to China.