Company: THRM
Filing Date: 2025-02-19
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000950170-25-023344
Chunk: 88

Company: Gentherm Inc
Filing Date: 2025-02-19
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 88
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 orders and resulting revenues from customers is significantly affected by global automotive production levels. Recent macroeconomic, geopolitical and industry factors noted above have made it particularly challenging for us to project future sales volumes and manage our business.

We use important intellectual property in our business. If we are unable to protect our intellectual property or if a third party makes assertions against us or our customers relating to intellectual property rights, our business could be adversely affected. 

We own important intellectual property, including patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets. Our intellectual property plays an important role in maintaining our competitive position in many of the markets that we serve. 

We cannot guarantee, however, that we will be able to secure all desired protection, nor that the steps we have taken to protect our intellectual property will be adequate, to prevent infringement of our rights or misappropriation or theft of our technology, trade secrets or know-how. For example, effective patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret protection may be unavailable or limited in some of the countries in which we operate. In addition, while we generally enter into confidentiality agreements with our employees 

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and third parties to protect our trade secrets, know-how, business strategy and other proprietary information, such confidentiality agreements could be breached or otherwise may not provide meaningful protection for our trade secrets and know-how related to the design, manufacture or operation of our products. If it became necessary for us to resort to litigation to protect our intellectual property rights, any proceedings could be burdensome and costly, and we may not prevail. Further, adequate remedies may not be available in the event of an unauthorized use or disclosure of our trade secrets and manufacturing expertise. Finally, for those products in our portfolio that rely on patent protection, once a patent has expired, the product is generally open to competition. Products under patent protection usually generate higher revenues and profitability than those not protected by patents. If we fail to successfully enforce our intellectual property rights, our competitive position and the value of our brands and other intangible assets could suffer, which could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

In addition, our competitors may develop technologies that are similar or superior to our proprietary technologies or design around the patents we own or license. Further, as we expand our operations in jurisdictions where the protection of intellectual property rights is less robust, the risk of others duplicating our proprietary technologies increases, despite efforts we undertake to protect them. Foreign governments may adopt regulations, and foreign governments or courts may render decisions, requiring compulsory licensing of intellectual property rights, or foreign