SEP Essentials

I recently attended the IPBC/IAM Live conference in Paris, where judges from both the Unified Patent Court (UPC) and a German court shared their perspectives on standard-essential patent (SEP) litigation. A consistent theme emerged from these discussions: neither the UPC nor Germany is equipped to make real FRAND (fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory) determinations. Florence Butin, President of the Court of First Instance of the UPC and herself a UPC judge, noted that th

The European Commission (“EC”) Study focused on European Courts’ “inconsistency” in the application of the Directive on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (“IPRED”) and advocated a “wait and see” “soft law” approach to solving the problem. See, "Inconsistency" - Europe Dithers Some More ). But, this “inconsistency” is not a failure to understand how to apply the IPRED properly but a willful refusal to follow it based on German and German-influenced Unified Pate

You can find my first post on the “Follow-up study on the application of the Directive on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights” (“ EC Study ”) here: "Inconsistency" - Europe Dithers Some More . I wanted to take another look at the EC Study since there is so much to unpack in its 132 pages (not to mention the multiple attachments). This post focuses on patent assertion entities (PAEs) and their relationship to other identified problems. The EC Study defines PAEs

The European Commission just released its “Follow-up study on the application of the Directive on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights” (which you can find here: EC Study ) (“EC Study”). The Directive 2004/48/EC on the enforcement of intellectual property rights (“IPRED”) “established a framework of measures, procedures, and remedies for the civil enforcement of IP rights”. Among other reforms, it was intended to bring proportionality and balance to the conside

2026 already has been a whirlwind of global activity, including in the world of standards and standard essential patents (SEPs). The United States has announced its intent “to win the global race for 6G” and obtain “scientific and technological global dominance” ( Global Dominance – The U.S.A.’s Views on Standards and SEPs ). China has further cemented its status as the only country in the world with a well-formulated and consistent strategy and vision around standards and S

On 27 April 2023, the European Commission published its proposal for the Regulation of Standard Essential Patents (“SEP Proposal”). The SEP Proposal was carefully considered and vetted through the European Union’s ordinary legislative procedures. Stakeholders and the public were given the opportunity to provide written input and there were more than 70 submissions from businesses, academics and other experts. It was also reviewed, and comments and suggestions made, by seve