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| Figure 3 of Tonies GmbH’s Korean Patent No. KR2721730 ("TOY") (Source: KIPRIS) |
The Korea Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board (KIPTAB) has rejected two cancellation petitions filed against Tonies GmbH's Korean patents, issuing decisions on Nov. 24, 2025.
The challenged patents — TOY (KR2721730) and Identification Carrier for a Toy for Reproducing Music or an Audio Story (KR2724426) — were both registered in October 2024 in Korea. The cancellation petitions were filed in January 2025.
Under Korean law, any person may file a cancellation petition within six months of a patent's registration, even without showing a legal interest. As a result, competitors frequently file such challenges anonymously using individual names. After the six-month window closes, only parties with a legally recognized interest or the examiner may seek invalidation through a trial.
Patent KR2721730 covers a toy designed to reproduce music or audio stories. It includes a speaker or speaker terminal capable of detecting characteristics or changes in characteristics within a peripheral region, a sensor that senses those characteristics, and a control unit that activates the speaker when specific traits are detected. The invention also incorporates mechanisms for toy identification and for transmitting signals dependent on that identification.
Patent KR2724426 relates to an identification carrier for a toy that plays music or spoken content. It includes an upright surface, a magnet, and an identification element. The identification piece alters external magnetic field characteristics when entering the field, while the magnet is arranged closer to the upright surface or positioned such that at least one surface normal to the upright surface is traversed only through the magnet or identification element.
Tonies GmbH previously faced a cancellation petition in May 2022 against another Korean patent, TOY (KR2335711). The board dismissed that petition in January 2023.
By PatenTrip
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