The company's deal was offered to the European Union, which is investigating whether Samsung is violating regulations on standard-essential patents. October 17, 2013 5:47 AM PDT Samsung has offered a solution to the European Union's continued investigation into its licensing terms on standard-essential patents. Samsung has proposed to abstain from seeking injunctions on devices that allegedly violate its standard-essential patents, as long as the agreement between it and the licensing company fall within a specific framework, the European Union announced on Thursday. That framework includes a 12-month negotiation period, and the option of handling the negotiation in court or arbitration if it's not resolved within that timeframe. The proposal includes only those patents related to mobile communications, according to the EU, and relate only to technologies in mobile products. Samsung's offer underscores the sometimes-shaky ground companies stand on when they own patents that are considered standard and essential. When companies own such patents, they're required to offer them at on fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory (FRAND) terms. Standard-essential patents are deemed as such when they are required for competition in a particular market. Samsung went under the regulatory microscope in January 2012 after the company engaged in several lawsuits and injunction requests against Apple products that it said, violated its standard-essential patents. By December of last year, the European Union's Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said that Samsung's lawsuits were in violation of anticompetition regulations and represents "an abuse of dominant market position." For its part, Samsung has argued that it hasn't violated any regulations, but the company, like Apple, has been extremely active in patent-infringement litigation. So far, neither Apple nor Samsung has been able to deal a decisive blow, but the European Union's investigation could make its lawsuits against Apple a bit more difficult to win. It's important to note, however, that the proposed offer would relate only to standard-essential patents, and not standard patents that are not deemed essential for the competitive landscape. More to come...
The company's deal was offered to the European Union, which is investigating whether Samsung is violating regulations on standard-essential patents.
Samsung has offered a solution to the European Union's continued investigation into its licensing terms on standard-essential patents.
Samsung has proposed to abstain from seeking injunctions on devices that allegedly violate its standard-essential patents, as long as the agreement between it and the licensing company fall within a specific framework, the European Union announced on Thursday. That framework includes a 12-month negotiation period, and the option of handling the negotiation in court or arbitration if it's not resolved within that timeframe.
The proposal includes only those patents related to mobile communications, according to the EU, and relate only to technologies in mobile products.
Samsung's offer underscores the sometimes-shaky ground companies stand on when they own patents that are considered standard and essential. When companies own such patents, they're required to offer them at on fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory (FRAND) terms. Standard-essential patents are deemed as such when they are required for competition in a particular market.
Samsung went under the regulatory microscope in January 2012 after the company engaged in several lawsuits and injunction requests against Apple products that it said, violated its standard-essential patents. By December of last year, the European Union's Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said that Samsung's lawsuits were in violation of anticompetition regulations and represents "an abuse of dominant market position."
For its part, Samsung has argued that it hasn't violated any regulations, but the company, like Apple, has been extremely active in patent-infringement litigation. So far, neither Apple nor Samsung has been able to deal a decisive blow, but the European Union's investigation could make its lawsuits against Apple a bit more difficult to win. It's important to note, however, that the proposed offer would relate only to standard-essential patents, and not standard patents that are not deemed essential for the competitive landscape.
More to come...
