"Video Streaming Royalty Stack Best Left to Devices," say Economist

The Brattle Group determined in a recently released report the aggregate value of video streaming technologies is already taken into account through existing device based royalty rates. Brattle considered various video codecs, streaming protocols, content delivery networks, and media players while excluding other technologies like wireless and Internet protocols.

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The report follows the Club Goods economic theory, to determine viewers should pay a fixed fee irrespective of how much content is consumed. The value allocable to each patent holder should consider the substitutability of their patents and the component technology they cover.

Brattle determines a device-based royalty market has generated competition amongst various codecs, thus ensuring that innovation in this space remains vibrant and healthy while minimizing issues such as royalty stacking and double counting. Otherwise, they conclude there will be significant issues with a streaming-based royalty given so many different subscription models including ad based, annual, one-off live events, etc.  

The report was prepared for Unified Patents and is exclusively available to Unified Patents Video Codec Zone members. To join the Video Codec Zone or for more information on the Brattle report, please contact info@unifiedpatents.com.

IP Investments entity, Distributed Media, media streaming patent found invalid

On September 5, 2024, the Central Reexamination Unit (CRU) entered a notice of intent to issue a reexamination certificate canceling the challenged claims (1-19 and 21) of U.S. Patent 7,739,714, owned and asserted by Distributed Media Solutions, an NPE and entity of IP Investments Group. The ‘714 patent relates to methods and systems for encoding digital multimedia data for transmission over a network. The patent has been asserted against AMC Networks, CuriosityStream, and Fenix International.

View district court litigations by Distributed Media Solutions. Unified was represented by Drew Sommer of Greenberg Traurig, and by in-house counsel, Michelle Aspen and Jessica L.A. Marks, in this proceeding.

To view the reexamination request, visit Unified’s Portal: https://portal.unifiedpatents.com/exparte/90019323

GenghisComm 4G/5G patent found invalid

On August 21, 2024, the Central Reexamination Unit (CRU) entered a final rejection of all the challenged claims of U.S. Patent 10,200,227, owned by GenghisComm Holdings, LLC, an NPE. The ’227 patent relates to OFDM wireless communication networks. It has been asserted against 4G/5G devices from many tech and automotive companies, including Continental Automotive, TCL Communication, and Toyota.

View district court litigations by GenghisComm. Unified was represented by Jon Bowser and Clint Wilkins of Haynes & Boone, and by in-house counsel, Michelle Aspen and Jessica L.A. Marks.

To view the reexamination request, visit Unified’s Portal: https://portal.unifiedpatents.com/exparte/90019411

China to the US: If you won’t regulate SEPs, we will

In an opinion piece written for the IAM website, Jonathan Stoud highlights what the State Administration of Market Regulation (SAMR) letter to Avanci means to standards leadership. The letter puts Avanci on notice for potentially acting anticompetitively, asking it to address monopoly risks related to its licensing practices.

Read the full article HERE

European Patent Litigation and Non-Practicing Entities: A Large and Looming Threat

JUVE Patent has published an article written by Jessica L.A. Marks, SEP & Foreign Managing Counsel at Unified Patents, over the growing presence of US-based Patent Assertion Entities (PAEs) spreading into Europe. Eight out of the top ten most active NPEs in Europe are US-based companies. However, NPEs are a large and growing part of the European landscape and are poised to increase with the introduction of the UPC.

To read the full article, click HERE.