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28 May 2020PatentsSarah Morgan

Webinar: SEPs in a connected future and the role of patent pools

While smart cars, connected cities and autonomous factories are firmly on the internet of things (IoT) agenda, difficulties in determining the value of integral technologies risk delaying development opportunities.

WIPR, in association with  InterDigital, covered the evolution of licensing wireless technologies in new internet of things (IoT) verticals and the role of licensing frameworks in a webinar hosted yesterday, May 27.

Luke McLeroy, senior vice president of business development at patent pool  Avanci, explained that new industries and companies launching IoT products present some very specific issues that need to be addressed when you’re undertaking standard-essential patent (SEP) licensing.

“First is that the number of licenses that need to be put in place to share standardised technology with companies increases a lot. Typically, one-on-one licensing was used to share [the technology] in the industry and that works, but when you talk about IoT, the volume of those licenses and sharing arrangements increases a lot,” he says.

Second, McLeroy added that for companies that are beginning to use wireless technology, it’s somewhat intimidating to enter the sector without the same level of experience as companies in the telecoms and wireless industries that have been doing this for years.

Determination difficulties

It’s also important to recognise the value that the cellular standards have brought to the world, said Timothy Berghuis, chief licensing officer at InterDigital.

“If you look back at the 2G and 3G days, there were competing standards. But people recognised the value of being able to roam globally [and it was] made possible with standards,” he said, adding that the industry is now selling billions of units a year.

Berghuis added: “It’s the scale that has made these devices so affordable, but what gets lost in that sometimes is the value of the technology, the standards process and the people who have put in the R&D to develop these standards.”

Mathias Hellman, vice president of IP rights strategy and portfolio management at  Ericsson, hoped that IoT companies will begin to see the licensing component of connectivity devices as outsourced R&D.

Hellman explained that companies such as Ericsson are devoting money and many researchers to creating this technology and developing an extremely complex platform at a low cost.

One of the main difficulties for determining value for IoT devices is the diversity of the devices that will connect to the cellular network.

Compare a smart meter and a connected vehicle. McLeroy explained that a connected car is mobile and uses data to provide information for the driver, monitor performance of the car—all of which require high bandwidth and complete mobility.

Smart meters, on the other hand, are stationary and will only send a small amount of data periodically, meaning they don’t require high bandwidth, although the standard is still adding value to the product.

“If you set the royalty at the level of value in a connected car, you’re in a spot where you’re too high for a smart meter. One size fits all pricing is not going to work … it seems like a hopeless endeavour,” said McLeroy.

Listen to the full webinar, “The Essential Value: IoT SEPs and the Case for Patent Pools”,  here. You’ll also learn more about the licensing frameworks that have emerged to support the new IoT ecosystem and why both InterDigital and Ericsson joined Avanci.

For more information on opportunities to participate in a webinar, contact Sarah Gooding on sgooding@newtonmedia.co.uk.

To listen to LSIPR's and WIPR's back catalogue, visit our  BrightTALK channel.

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