I thought… “I am not allowed to manufacture, sell, or distribute a product in Malaysia that is already patented in the US.”
This is not totally true, it depends. If you want to manufacture any product that is already patented in the US, you should at least take the following steps.
First, check at the Malaysian Patent Office records whether the corresponding patent has been granted in Malaysia and if so, whether the Malaysian patent is still subsisting or whether the patent has lapsed or expired. If the answer to the last question is yes, then you are at liberty to manufacture the product disclosed in the patent. But what you cannot do is to manufacture the product and export the product to other countries before ensuring whether any patents corresponding to the US patent are still subsisting. You also have to consider other related IP rights such as trademark rights, design rights and copyright issues. This area of IP rights and the clearance of these rights before manufacturing, selling or exporting the products is complex and you are strongly urged to seek advice from experienced IP practitioners before you decide to manufacture a product disclosed in a foreign granted patent.
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