Licensing Standard Essential Patents

FRAND and the Internet of Things
Erscheinungsjahr 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5099-4755-3
Verlag: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Buch, Englisch, 320 Seiten, Hardback, Format (B × H): 158 mm x 236 mm, Gewicht: 630 g

What is the licensing framework of standard essential patents (SEPs) for connectivity standards such as 5G and Wi-Fi? How will the framework change with the Internet of Things (IoT)? This book provides comprehensive answers to these questions.

For over two decades, connectivity standards have been the subject of litigation and controversy around the globe. Now, with the introduction of 5G and the emergence of the world of connected objects, or the IoT, the licensing framework for SEPs is becoming even more contentious. In order to bring clarity to the debate, this book analyses and explains key components of a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) licence for SEPs; clarifies the economic, policy and market background of SEP disputes; examines the interrelated application of contract, patent and competition laws; and describes the approaches by courts and regulators in the EU, US and the UK. Importantly, the book also assesses how the experience from the smartphone and ICT industries can be applied in a new environment of the IoT, and considers what needs to be changed in the future SEP licensing landscape.

The book provides a holistic coverage of SEP licensing issues in an attempt to reduce uncertainty within this highly complex and technical area, and will be useful to practitioners, policy makers, SMEs and large technology companies in the IoT, as well as academics interested in the field.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Nikolic, Igor

Fachgebiete

• Rechtswissenschaften Wirtschaftsrecht Medienrecht Telekommunikationsrecht, IT-Recht, Internetrecht
• Rechtswissenschaften Wirtschaftsrecht Gewerblicher Rechtsschutz Patentrecht, Gebrauchs- und Geschmacksmusterrecht, Designrecht
• Rechtswissenschaften Ausländisches Recht Common Law (UK, USA, Australien u.a.)
• Rechtswissenschaften Internationales Recht und Europarecht Internationales Recht Internationaler Gewerblicher Rechtsschutz, Medien-, IT- und Urheberrecht
• Rechtswissenschaften Wirtschaftsrecht Gewerblicher Rechtsschutz Wettbewerbs- und Kartellrecht, Werberecht
• Rechtswissenschaften Internationales Recht und Europarecht Europarecht Europäischer Gewerblicher Rechtsschutz, Medien-, IT- und Urheberrecht

Inhaltsverzeichnis

I. Setting the Context

II. Structure

PART I
THE STANDARD-DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENT
1. Standards, Standard-Development Organisations and Standard Essential Patents

I. Standards

A. Technical Interoperability Standards

B. Classification of Standards

i. Standards Based on their Source

a. De Facto Standards

b. Collaborative Standards

c. Governmental Standards

ii. Open and Closed Standards

II. Standard Development Organisations

A. Types of SDOs

B. Membership

C. How SDOs Develop Standards

III. Standard Essential Patents

A. SEPs in IPR Policies of SDOs

i. Disclosure Rules

ii. Licensing Rules

B. The Meaning of Essentiality

C. The Problem of Over-Disclosure

IV. Conclusion

2. The Dynamics of Standard Essential Patent Licensing: Patent Holdup, Holdout and Royalty Stacking

I. Industry Convergences and Changing Market Dynamics

II. Patent Holdup and Royalty Stacking

A. Patent Holdup

B. Royalty Stacking

C. The Influence of Patent Holdup and Royalty Stacking Theories

III. Criticism of Patent Holdup and Royalty Stacking Theories

A. The Lack of Empirical Evidence of Systematic Negative Effects

B. The Misunderstanding of the Standardisation Process and Legal Licensing Framework

IV. Patent Holdout

V. Conclusion

PART II
THE MEANING AND CONTENT OF A FRAND LICENCE
3. The Nature of a FRAND Commitment

I. The Principles and the Text of a FRAND Commitment

II. The Enforceability of a FRAND Commitment

A. Contract Law

i. Can SDO Non-Members Rely on a FRAND Contract?

ii. Is a FRAND Commitment Sufficiently Clear to be an Enforceable Contract
iii. Transferability of a FRAND Commitment

iv. Not All Jurisdictions Recognise Third-Party Beneficiary Rights

v. SDOs Could Clarify the Contractual Nature of a FRAND Commitment

B. Competition Law

i. EU Competition Law and Breach of FRAND Commitments

ii. US Antitrust Law and Breach of FRAND Commitments

iii. The Role of Competition Law in the SEP Context

C. Alternative Theories on the Enforceability of FRAND Commitments

III. Conclusion

4. FRAND Royalty

I. The Principles of FRAND Royalty

A. The Value of the Technology Itself (the Ex Ante Incremental Value Approach)

i. Reception in Practice

ii. Criticism of the Ex Ante Incremental Value Approach

a. Misunderstanding the Standard-Development Process

b. Depreciating the Value of SEPs

c. Not Used in Real-World Commercial Transactions
d. Inapplicability in Practice

B. Sharing the Value of Standardisation

II. Calculating FRAND Royalties in Practice

A. Comparable Licences

i. Application in Practice

B. Top-Down Approach

i. Application in Practice

C. Other Approaches

III. Conclusion

5. The Non-Discrimination Requirement of a FRAND Commitment

I. Positive and Negative Aspects of Price Discrimination in Standard Essential Patent Licensing

II. The Non-Discrimination Requirement in the Text of a FRAND Commitment

III. No Requirement to Apply Uniform Terms to All Licensees

IV. Interpretations of the Non-Discrimination Requirement of a FRAND Commitment

A. Prohibition of Discrimination between Different Levels of the Production Chain

B. Prohibiting Price Discrimination of Vertically Integrated SEP Holders against Downstream Competitors

C. Prohibiting Discrimination against Similarly Situated Licensees

i. Which Licensees are Similarly Situated?

ii. When is Dissimilar Treatment Discriminatory?

iii. What are the Remedies for Discrimination?

V. The Application of the Non-Discrimination Requirement of a FRAND Commitment

VI. Confidentiality Agreements and Disclosure of Licences

VII. Conclusion

6. FRAND Royalty Base

I. Introduction: The End-Product or Component?
II. The Appropriate FRAND Royalty Base

III. The Legal Requirement to Use a Particular Royalty Base

A. Origins and Evolution of the SSPPU Theory

i. US Patent Damages System and the Emergence of the SSPPU Theory

ii. Reception and Expansion of the SSPPU Doctrine by the Federal Circuit

iii. Clarification and Backtracking of the SSPPU Doctrine by the Federal Circuit

iv. Jury Bias as a Reason for the Introduction of the SSPPU
B. Conclusion

IV. The Royalty Base in Standard Essential Patent Litigation

V. Conclusion

7. FRAND and Value Chain Licensing

I. The Value Chain Licensing Debate

II. Patent Law and Value Chain Licensing

III. FRAND Commitments and Value Chain Licensing

IV. Competition Law and Value Chain Licensing

A. Refusal to License and EU Competition Law

B. Article 101 TFEU and the Horizontal Cooperation Guidelines

C. Refusal to License and US Antitrust Law

V. Policy Outlook for the Internet of Things

VI. Conclusion

8. Remedies

I. Injunctions

A. Principles of Equity (US Courts)

B. Public Policy (International Trade Commission)

C. Unfair Competition (Federal Trade Commission)

D. Competition Law (EU)

i. The Interpretation of Huawei v ZTE by National Courts
E. Conclusion

II. Global or Territorial Scope of a FRAND Licence?

III. Antisuit Injunctions

IV. Past Damages

V. Procedural Remedies to Facilitate Patent Licensing

A. A FRAND Trial First

B. Interim Payments

VI. Conclusion

PART III
STANDARD ESSENTIAL PATENT LICENSING IN THE INTERNET OF THINGS
9. Standard Essential Patent Licensing in the Internet of Things

I. Challenges of FRAND Licensing in the Internet of Things

II. Current Proposals for Improving the Standard Essential Patent Licensing Framework

A. Transparency of the SEP Landscape

B. Unilateral Ex Ante Disclosure of Maximum Licensing Terms

C. Collectively Setting an Aggregate Royalty for a Standard

D. Global Rate-Setting Tribunals

III. Collective Licensing Models for the Internet of Things
A. Patent Pools for the IoT

i. Overcoming the Obstacles in Pool Formation

a. Assembling a Critical Number of Upstream Companies is Sufficient

b. Pool Royalty to Induce Pool Participation and Prevent Free Riding

c. Division of Royalties
d. Essentiality Checks

e. IoT Industry-Specific Licensing Terms

f. Transparency of Terms and Patents

B. Implementers' Collective Licensing Associations

IV. Conclusion

Über Autor(innen)

Nikolic, Igor
Igor Nikolic is Robert Schuman Fellow at the European University Institute, Italy, and Senior Fellow at the UCL Centre for Law, Economics and Society, UK.

Igor Nikolic is Robert Schuman Fellow at the European University Institute, Italy, and Senior Fellow at the Centre for Law, Economics and Society, University College London, UK.