German police disclosed that they had conducted a check on exhibitors at CeBIT held in Hannover, Germany and confiscated dozens of boxes of mobile phones, navigation instruments and other devices from Chinese businesses suspected of patent infringements.
The police said that of the 51 exhibitors involved, 24 were from mainland China, three from Hong Kong, 12 from Taiwan, nine from Germany and three from Poland, the Netherlands and South Korea, respectively. The police said that they had investigated more than 180 people, but it did not disclose the names of the people or the companies involved.
The police said that they confiscated a total of 68 boxes of products, files and pamphlets, including mobile phones, navigation equipment, electronic photo frame and flat screen. They said that the majority of the exhibitors were cooperative and only one of the exhibitors refused their search and was taken back to the police station.
The police also disclosed that most of the infringement products were MP3, MP4 or video players. According to published reports, one company had its iPhone clone confiscated.
CeBIT is one of the world's largest trade fair showcasing digital IT and telecommunications solutions for home and work environments. The key target groups are users from industry, the retail sector, skilled trades, banks, the services sector, and government agencies. Deutsche Messe AG has organized CeBIT in Hannover each spring since 1986, and this year the event ran from March 4 – 9.