MEP highlights patent hold-out and SEP interests before European Commission
Questions broach the costs incurred by the unlicensed use of IP by a Chinese phone maker | Rights of IP holders in the telecoms sector raised | Nokia | Oppo.
Questions concerning the controversial issue of patent hold-out have been put before the European Commission by a member of the European parliament (MEP).
MEP Andreas Schwab presented the three queries ahead of the Commission’s plans to publish a package of proposals affecting standard-essential patents (SEPs) on April 26.
Schwab is a German politician and member of the European parliament for Germany.
The move comes as patent-holdout for SEPs continues to provoke contentious debate.
Patent hold-out occurs when an implementer refuses to negotiate in good faith with an innovator for a licence to valid patent(s) that the implementer infringes, and instead forces the innovator to either undertake significant litigation costs and time delays to extract a licensing payment through a court order, or else to simply drop the matter.
In recent years, Nokia has engaged in a global litigation battle with Oppo, over the latter’s alleged refusal to negotiate fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory licensing terms with the Finnish multinational.
In Schwab’s submission, he noted that “with its unambiguous framework for IP protection, the single market is the backbone of European industry”.
Drawing attention to Shenzhen-based Transsion Holdings, a Chinese manufacturer of mobile telephones, the MEP observed that the company is “the only major handset maker worldwide that operates without EU- or US-developed licences for IP, which are essential to access cellular standards”.
He then pointed out that European leadership in standards development depends on enforceable ownership rights for the standard-essential patents underpinning fundamental technologies, such as the 5G cellular standard.
“The ever-accelerating evolution of cellular standards in Europe is financed through the licensing of standard-essential technologies. Therefore, IP protection with regard to cellular standards has a key role to play in achieving the connectivity targets of the EU’s Digital Compass,” he wrote.
The questions are:
- In light of its intention to propose a new framework for standard-essential patents, has the Commission calculated the cost to the EU single market of the unlicensed use of EU-made IP, as in the case of Transsion Holdings, and what is its position in this regard?
- Given its drive to achieve strategic autonomy for the EU, will it discourage European businesses from establishing commercial partnerships with companies known to deliberately infringe IP rights, or will it issue any recommendations on the subject?
- How will the Commission protect IP holders in the telecommunication sector from the unlicensed use of their IP globally?
The Commission has six weeks to respond. The European Parliament previously requested that the Commission collect objective evidence of hold-out but this has not yet happened.
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