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Patent Case Could Shift Power Balance In Tech Industry

Posted by samzenpus on from the makers-and-takers dept.

An anonymous reader writes A lawsuit between Apple and Google could drastically change the power balance between patent holders and device makers. "The dispute centers on so-called standard-essential patents, which cover technology that is included in industry-wide technology standards. Since others have to use the technology if they want their own products to meet an industry standard, the companies that submit their patents for approval by standards bodies are required to license them out on 'reasonable and non-discriminatory',(paywalled) or RAND, terms." If Apple wins, the understanding of what fees are RAND may decrease by at least an order of magnitude.

3 of 83 comments (clear)

  1. Apple has little to do with this by khoker · · Score: 5, Informative

    It's Google VS Microsoft. The first line of the link says as much. Apple only (rightfully) sided with Microsoft. They aren't involved in the lawsuit.

  2. Patent fees are always RAND... by Jax+Omen · · Score: 5, Funny

    specifically, RAND(toomuch,waytoomuch).

  3. "standard-essential patents” by tlambert · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Any “standard-essential patents” should be public domain (or as close as possible, as Elon Musk did with the Tesla battery circuitry), or they should not be included in the standards. Period. FRAND/RAND is code for forming a club where the existing players get to play, but for which there is still a large - potentially huge) cost to join said club - and therefore an artificial barrier to entry into any existing market.

    Either make it free to license, or leave it out of the standard, please.