PR92442

SEOUL, South Korea and WASHINGTON, Oct. 19, 2021 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

The toy brand Mecard, which is developed with proprietary and patented

technology owned by Korean toy-content company Choirock Contents Company Co.,

Ltd. (CEO: Jong-il Choi), prevailed on an appeal case filed by Spin Master,

Ltd., a Canadian global toy company, in the United States. This victory likely

puts an end to a series of global patent disputes between the two companies.

On October 12, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

affirmed the final written decisions of the United States Patent Trial and

Appeal Board (PTAB) that invalidated all of the challenged claims of three

"Bakugan" patents owned by Spin Master in inter partes review petitions filed

by Choirock. Both the PTAB and Federal Circuit agreed with Choirock that Spin

Master's patents are invalid.

In 2018, Spin Master sued US toy company, Mattel, Inc., in the United States,

Canada, and Australia, among other jurisdictions, alleging that Mecard toys

infringed Spin Master's "Bakugan" patents. Mattel was distributing Mecard toys

in those countries through its license obtained from Choirock. Despite the

PTAB's rulings that invalidated its "Bakugan" patents, Spin Master continued to

obstruct Mecard's entrance into the global market by appealing the PTAB's

rulings to the Federal Circuit. Spin Master's prolonged litigation against

Choirock has obstructed Choirock's Mecard business for many years, and further

caused Choirock to spend an immense cost to defend the Spin Master litigations.

In addition to its victory in the United States, Choirock has won all of its

other global patent disputes with Spin Master in China and Europe. An Italian

Court (EU) and the Supreme Court of China also ruled that Spin Master's EU

patent is unpatentable and that Mecard toys do not infringe Spin Master's

Chinese patent, respectively. These rulings effectively put an end to the

parties' legal fights in China and the EU. The recent ruling of the Federal

Circuit in the U.S. re-confirmed that Spin Master's "Bakugan" patents lack

patentability because they are nothing more than a combination of previously

developed or known toy technologies.

Having successfully lifted Spin Master's obstruction of Choirock's global toy

business, the Mecard brand now likely secures even more dominance in the

toy-content market with the addition of its latest product, MecardBall.

Inspired by "Marbles Shooting," one of Korea's popular traditional games,

MecardBall utilizes a high-tech skill for causing an instant transformation of

a toy from a car into a robot when the car embraces a marble. MecardBall is

continuing the success of TurningMecard.

Choirock owns intellectual property rights associated with the Mecard brand.

Choirock announced that "with our recent victory on the US appeal, we have

successfully overcome all of the legal barriers that were raised by Spin

Master. Mecard was awarded 'The Best Selling Toy in Korea' (Certified by Korea

Record Institute) and has various lines of products. With the addition of

MecardBall, which is already drawing attention in the toy industry, the company

will accelerate its plan to launch Mecard in the global market and expects to

see a positive response from the industry."  

Like "Squid Game," a drama series streaming on Netflix that introduced Korea's

traditional play culture and games to the world, the company hopes that Mecard

brand also contributes to spreading Korea's traditional play culture and games

to the world. Mecard brand is similar to "Squid Game" in the sense that Mecard

has been applying Korea's play culture and games since its inception.

SOURCE  Choirock Contents Company Co., Ltd.