Toward sustainable patent practices in Japan: unlocking patent exhaustion in the digital age

Weiyu Zhang

Chapter 16 in Intellectual Property, Ethical Innovation and Sustainability, 2026, pp 222-235 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter explores the potential for revising the traditional patent exhaustion doctrine in light of sustainability concerns in the digital era. It explains how practices that seek to narrow and circumvent exhaustion, including contractual restrictions, ownership reservations, end‑stage claims, and IC‑chip controls, may inadvertently chill recycling, competition, and broader sustainability goals. This chapter considers approaches to a “weak but flexible” exhaustion for data‑driven, modular IoT contexts, paired with safeguards for bona fide purchasers and limits on injunctions. FRAND‑based transparency may serve as an interim mechanism. It concludes by proposing legislative reforms and judicial guidance to clarify the scope of exhaustion in a way that preserves legal certainty, market access, and fair competition, particularly in the context of standard-essential patents and complex digital systems.

Keywords: Patent Exhaustion; IoT; Supply Chain; Standard; Essential Patents; SEPs; FRAND; Contractual Flexibility (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035367764
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