Company: TXG
Filing Date: 2025-05-09
Form Type: 10-Q
Source: 0001770787-25-000032
Chunk: 225

Company: 10x Genomics, Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-05-09
Form: 10-Q
Item: Part I, Item 4
Chunk 225
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 patent laws that might be enacted into law by U.S. and foreign legislative bodies. Those changes may materially affect our patents or patent applications and our ability to obtain additional patent protection in the future. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our competitive position, business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

In June 2023, the European Unitary Patent system and the European Unified Patent Court (“UPC”) were launched. European patent applications now have the option, upon grant of a patent, of becoming a Unitary Patent which is subject to the jurisdiction of the UPC. In addition, conventional European patents, both already granted at the time the new system began and granted 

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thereafter, are subject to the jurisdiction of the UPC, unless actively opted out. This was a significant change in European patent practice, and deciding whether to opt-in or opt-out of Unitary Patent practice entail strategic and cost considerations. The UPC provides third parties with a new forum to centrally revoke our European patents and makes it possible for a third party to obtain pan-European injunctions against us. It will be several years before we will understand the scope of patent rights that will be recognized and the strength of patent remedies that will be provided by the UPC. While we have the right to opt our patents out of the UPC over the first seven years of the court’s existence, doing so may preclude us from realizing the benefits of the UPC. Moreover, the decision whether to opt-in or opt-out of Unitary Patent status will require coordinating with co-applicants, if any, adding complexity to any such decision.

The legal systems in certain countries may also favor state-sponsored or companies headquartered in particular jurisdictions over our first-in-time patents and other intellectual property protection. We are aware of incidents where such entities have stolen the intellectual property of domestic companies in order to create competing products and we believe we may face such circumstances ourselves in the future. For example, through its “Annual Special 301 Report on Intellectual Property,” the Office of the United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) has been reporting on the adequacy and effectiveness of intellectual property protection in a number of foreign countries that are U.S. trading partners and their protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights. A number of countries in which both we and our distributors operate have been identified in the reports as being on the Priority Watch List. Placement of a country on the Priority Watch List indicates that particular problems exist in that country with respect to intellectual property protection, enforcement, or market access for persons relying on intellectual