Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026, doc. 2)
| Date | 1 May 2026 |
|---|---|
| Court | CFI |
| Division | The Hague (NL) Local Division |
| Type of action | Infringement Action |
| Case number(s) | UPC_CFI_1536/2025 |
| Registry reference | UPC-CFI-0001536/2025 |
| Parties | Dolby International AB v. CPYou B.V. / Acer et al. |
Official decision (PDF) · UPC registry entry
Case timeline
- 2 April 2026 : Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 2 April 2026) UPC-CFI-0001536/2025
- 30 April 2026 : Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 30 April 2026) UPC-CFI-0001536/2025
- 1 May 2026 : Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026) UPC-CFI-0001536/2025
- 1 May 2026 : Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026, doc. 3) UPC-CFI-0001536/2025
- 18 August 2026 : Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 18 August 2026) UPC-CFI-0001536/2025
Dhenne Avocats represents claimants and defendants in European patent disputes before the Unified Patent Court, including the Paris divisions.
Dhenne Avocats · 10 October 2026
Our analysis
Summary
By order of 8 July 2026 (UPC_CFI_1536/2025, UPC_CFI_982/2026 and UPC_CFI_1168/2026), the panel of The Hague Local Division dismissed the request for review under Rule 333 RoP of the judge-rapporteur’s order of 1 May 2026, which had held admissible Acer’s counterclaim for rate-setting against Vectis IP, intervening in support of Dolby in an infringement action on EP 3 079 153. It also added Vectis, so far as necessary, as a party on Dolby’s side and granted leave to appeal. The decision matters for pool licensing disputes: a pool administrator that intervenes voluntarily may be targeted directly by the implementer’s claim.
Question
May a counterclaim for setting a licence rate be directed against an intervener supporting the claimant in an infringement action?
Decision
Under Rule 315.4 RoP an intervener is treated as a party unless the court orders otherwise, so a counterclaim may be directed against it, all the more so as equal treatment requires this where it supports the claimant (paragraph 4.1). Vectis, authorised by Dolby, can grant a licence. Whether it is bound by Dolby’s FRAND commitments is a matter for the merits (paragraph 4.2). Since Art. 32(1)(a) UPCA allows Vectis to defend alongside Dolby on the licence, it would be anomalous to exclude a claim against it (paragraph 4.3). Art. 47 UPCA limits who may bring an action, not who may intervene (paragraph 4.5). In the alternative, Vectis was added as a party under Rule 305 RoP (paragraph 4.7). The request for a separate time limit was refused (paragraph 4.9). Leave to appeal was granted under Rule 220.2 RoP, as the point has not been decided by the Court of Appeal.
Key points for practice
- A pool administrator intervening in support of the patentee is exposed to a counterclaim for rate-setting (paragraphs 4.1 to 4.5).
- As the point is now before the Court of Appeal, the outcome remains to be confirmed.
Provisions applied
- Agreement on a Unified Patent Court
- Arts 32(1)(a), 47(1) and 73
- Rules of Procedure
- Rules 19, 220.2, 305, 313, 315.4, 316.3 and 333
- Case law cited
- Strabag v Swarco Futurit, Court of Appeal, 27 November 2025
Related decisions
Prepared by Dhenne Avocats from the official decision, consulted on 10 October 2026. The database is updated every week, on Friday. Only the official text is authoritative.
Decisions in the same proceedings
Going further
Lexicon: Patent infringement action.
Publications by Matthieu Dhenne: Pleading the Long Arm: What a UPC Statement of Claim Must Carry Beyond Jurisdiction (Kluwer Patent Blog).
Source and translations
- Official source
- Unified Patent Court registry link recorded in the record
- Original language
- not recorded
- Translation available
- no translation recorded the firm’s French record is a summary, not a translation
- Date checked
- not recorded
Follow this case
Proceedings, related decisions, appeals, parties and patents as recorded in the registry and in the Dhenne Avocats corpus. Each link states its source.
Parties
- claimantDolby International AB35 decisions in the corpusFollow this party
- defendantCPYou B.V.10 decisions in the corpusFollow this party
- defendantAcer et al5 decisions in the corpusFollow this party
Decisions in the same proceedings and documented appeals
- 2 April 2026 Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 2 April 2026) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_1536/2025
Le juge rapporteur soumet aux parties son résumé de la conférence de gestion, dit que l’affaire suit le règlement de procédure et fixe une écriture de Dolby au 9 mars 2026.
- 30 April 2026 Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 30 April 2026) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_1536/2025
Le juge rapporteur consigne l’audience de gestion du 23 février 2026, invite les parties à poursuivre la négociation sur le pool et ordonne que l’instance suive son cours, Dolby devant déposer des observations.
- 1 May 2026 Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_1536/2025
Le juge rapporteur rectifie, sans opposition, l'ordonnance du 1er mai 2026 en remplaçant « Dolby and Acer » par « Dolby and Vectis » sous la lettre A.
- 1 May 2026 Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026, doc. 2) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_1536/2025
- 1 May 2026 Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026, doc. 3) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_1536/2025
Le juge rapporteur de la division locale de La Haye admet l'intervention de Vectis, déclare recevable la demande reconventionnelle en fixation du taux dirigée contre elle et ordonne la production des licences comparables sous un régime de confidentialité à deux niveaux.
- 18 August 2026 Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 18 August 2026) Infringement Action · UPC_CFI_1536/2025
La formation rejette le recours : l'intervenant étant traité comme une partie (R. 315.4), une demande reconventionnelle en fixation du taux de redevance peut être dirigée contre lui. Vectis est en outre ajoutée comme partie aux côtés de Dolby et l'autorisation de faire appel est accordée.
What the record states
- Nature of the act
- Infringement Action
- Outcome (Dhenne Avocats summary)
- La division locale de La Haye confirme la recevabilité de la demande reconventionnelle en fixation du taux de licence contre Vectis, intervenante au soutien de Dolby, l'ajoute comme partie et autorise l'appel.
- Appeal
- No appeal documented in the corpus, this does not mean that no appeal was lodged.
- Instance
- First-instance decision, whether it has become final is not recorded.
Patents mentioned
EP 3 079 153mentioned in: Dhenne Avocats analysis Follow this patent
Related decisions cited in the analyses
- Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 18 August 2026) cited in this record
- Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026) cited in this record
- Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026, doc. 3) cited in this record
- Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 30 April 2026) cited in this record
- Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 2 April 2026) cited in this record
- STRABAG Infrastructure & Safet v SWARCO FUTURIT Verkehrssignals (CoA, 27 November 2025) cited in this record
Patents and standards
| Publication | Role in the dispute | Family | Standard and declaration | Pool | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EP 3 079 153Selective post filter recorded proprietor: Dolby International AB | Mentioned in the analysis (role not qualified) Also mentioned in 7 other decision(s): Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 18 August 2026) · Vectis IP v CPYou (CoA, UPC_CoA_118/2026, 5 August 2026) · Dolby International v Beko Germany (CFI, 27 July 2026) · Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026) · Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, UPC_CFI_1536/2025, 1 May 2026, doc. · Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 30 April 2026) · Dolby International v CPYou (CFI, 2 April 2026) | not recorded | not recorded | not recorded | Espacenet · European Patent Register existence and title of the publication checked on 30 October 2026 (Google Patents, Espacenet and Register links are not checked automatically) mentioned in: Dhenne Avocats analysis |
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