[Exclusive] Patent War Over 'Pill and Liquid Separation' Beverage Caps... Korea's First Adopter Faces Continuous Defeats

hy (formerly Korea Yakult), which first introduced the 'dual formulation' container in Korea that allows simultaneous consumption of pills and liquid, suffered a defeat in a patent infringement lawsuit against Namyang Dairy Products, resulting in a series of losses in the 'cap litigation' battles with Namyang Dairy Products.

hy 'MPRO3 (Empro3)' and Namyang Dairy Products 'Postbiotics Inner Care'

According to the legal community on the 7th, the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 61 (Presiding Judge Kim Se-yong) dismissed the claims of hy and Natural Way in the first trial of the patent infringement injunction lawsuit against Namyang Dairy Products on the 30th of last month, stating that "it is difficult to conclude that the two designs have similar aesthetic impressions," ruling in favor of Namyang Dairy Products.

In 2012, Natural Way developed a dual formulation product that can separate and store different substances in one container. It was an innovative product idea that prevented pills and liquid from mixing, which would alter the ingredients and texture. hy, which had exclusive supply rights, created its own products such as 'Stomach (Wil)', 'Intestine (MPRO)', and 'Liver (Coopers)' in dual formulation. In 2019, hy launched 'MPRO3' with a patented cap, enabling simultaneous consumption of pills and liquid.

The litigation between hy and Namyang Dairy Products began in February 2021 when Namyang Dairy Products released the dual formulation product 'Postbiotics Inner Care' in three types: 'Liver Protect,' 'Intestine Protect,' and 'Stomach Protect.'

hy and Natural Way claimed, "The inner cap design of Namyang Dairy Products' product is identical to Natural Way's registered design filed in 2018. Namyang Dairy Products must cease infringement under the Design Protection Act and destroy related goods and equipment," demanding an injunction against patent infringement.

The first trial focused more on the differences than the similarities of the designs and ruled in favor of Namyang Dairy Products. It stated, "General consumers who see the transparent inner cap of Namyang Dairy Products' product can immediately recognize the interior, experiencing both three-dimensionality and freshness," and "Natural Way's registered design, which is partially opaque, gives a simple and solid impression." Other differences were also pointed out, such as the registered design being rectangular and Namyang Dairy Products' inner cap trapezoidal when viewed from the front.

hy must decide whether to appeal within two weeks of receiving the judgment. However, since it has already lost other lawsuits, it seems unlikely that the verdict will be overturned in the appeal trial of this case.

Previously, Namyang Dairy Products filed a counter lawsuit to confirm the scope of rights of the registered design in response to hy's lawsuit. The Patent Court ruled in favor of Namyang Dairy Products, stating that "the designs of both companies are not considered similar," and this ruling was finalized by the Supreme Court in May.

hy also lost in a separate unfair competition injunction lawsuit. hy claimed, "'Dual formulation concept' and 'Stomach, Intestine, Liver lineup' are achievements built through continuous efforts," and requested "to prohibit the manufacture and sale of Namyang Dairy Products' products that directly copied these and to dispose of the finished products."

However, the first trial court acknowledged hy's investment and efforts in developing the dual formulation product, but judged that the concept of the dual formulation container had been publicly known before. It was considered an abstract idea belonging to the public domain, freely usable by anyone. A patent invention disclosed in Germany in 1973 was also cited as evidence of similarity to hy's technical idea. hy, which initially opposed the first trial ruling, withdrew its appeal, confirming the judgment as is.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.