Companies pledge to continue supporting new moms with innovative products that have transformed infant feeding.
EL DORADO HILLS, Calif., Oct. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Dao Health, the company that launched 'Freemie' - the first commercially viable wearable breast pump - announced today that it has entered into a multi-year arrangement in relation to its ongoing patent dispute with Chiaro Technology Limited, the British company that created the popular Elvie range of wearable breast pumps, including a fully in-bra pump.
The emergence of wearable breast pumps over the last decade has transformed the process by which millions of women around the world collect 'breast milk to feed their children. Many new moms who rely on a breast pump spend hours each day pumping, so the ability to multi-task is a huge benefit for busy women in the postpartum period.
Details of the settlement will remain confidential, but the parties jointly communicated their satisfaction with the amicable resolution.
Hannah Farrington, General Counsel at Chiaro Technology said, "We are pleased to be able to engage Dao Health in a constructive dialogue to resolve our differences. Dao Health made a significant contribution to the market and we appreciate their revolutionary work to make wearable breast pumps viable. Ultimately, we are both companies that want to support women and this arrangement will allow each of Dao Health and Chiaro to now focus our efforts on this important goal. Chiaro Technology is proud to create female-first technology which harnesses the power of smart technology to offer innovative solutions for women's health needs."
Dan Garbez, CEO and co-founder of Dao Health, and co-inventor of the Freemie® with his wife, Dr. Stella Dao, said, "We are delighted to have reached an amicable resolution with Chiaro. We are incredibly proud of the early work of Dao Health, which unleashed the wearable revolution. The promise of wearable breast pumps went from a pipe dream 20 years ago to ubiquitous reality today. Our mission has always been about making it easier for mothers to provide breast milk for their children. Dao Health will continue to support companies like Chiaro which share this mission, and which are genuinely innovating in this area."
Garbez was careful to point out, however, that the global market for breast pumps continues to suffer from a flood of lower-quality products that blatantly infringe on Dao Health's intellectual property rights. Companies like Dao Health and Chiaro invest heavily in R&D and safety testing. Mr. Garbez continued, "Dao Health will continue to go after products that infringe our foundational patents that have proliferated in the market as of late. These cheap knockoffs do a disservice to women and to licensees of our technology, as well as to other companies that develop their own proprietary technologies. Infringers hurt future consumers by depriving innovative companies of the revenues that are critical to developing and improving safe, quality products for everyone. We will continue to take a robust stance against copycat infringers whilst at the same time championing companies who continue to advance technologies in this area."
About Dao Health
The universal form factor of the modern wearable breast pump was developed by Dao Health under the Freemie® brand. Emergency doctor Stella Dao had the idea after she delivered preemie twins in 2004. The basic design conforms to a woman's natural shape and easily slips into her regular bra where it collects milk, so she can pump while engaged in just about any other daily activity. Early media accounts described Freemie as "revolutionary," "game-changing," and "genius."
Traditional pumps required women to undress and be secluded. In Dr. Dao's case, this meant she would be separated from staff and critically ill patients, which was unacceptable. The idea for a wearable pump came to her in a flash of inspiration, borne of disappointment and frustration at her own personal situation. As she fleshed out her idea for a wearable pump with her husband Dan Garbez, the couple then quickly decided to address a global public health challenge. The couple invested millions of dollars of their own money, and years of effort on R&D, safety and efficacy testing, regulatory compliance and market research. The first successful wearable Freemie® breast pump systems were launched in 2013. Freemie cups and pumps quickly became a bestseller in the US insurance market and then launched at major retailers nationwide.
Garbez said, "Stella quickly realized that the old pump equipment was not well-adapted to modern life, but the culture at that time was also resistant to women pumping around other people. So we had a lot of work to do to change perceptions and attitudes. But since we launched Freemie® over a decade ago, we have had countless women telling us how we changed their lives. Women started pumping in meetings, at the park, surgeons are pumping in the operating room, travelers now pump in flight, and pilots are even pumping in the cockpit! Stories like this are why Dao Health exists."
Media Contact
Dan Garbez, Dao Health, 1 (916) 600-8405, [email protected], www.freemie.com
SOURCE Dao Health
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