Tuesday 24 December 2013

FTC publishes comments on proposed information requests to patent assertion entities, just in time for Christmas!

In early October, the US Federal Trade Commission solicited public comments on proposed information requests to patent assertion entities engaged in licensing and asserting patents in the wireless communications sector. The broad study envisioned by the FTC would explore the following issues:
  • How do PAEs organize their corporate legal structure, including parent and subsidiary entities?
  • What types of patents do PAEs hold, and how do they organize their holdings?
  • How do PAEs acquire patents, and how do they compensate prior patent owners?
  • How do PAEs engage in assertion activity (i.e. demand, litigation, and licensing behavior)?
  • What does assertion activity cost PAEs?
  • What do PAEs earn through assertion activity?
Companies and individuals were given 60 days to provide their comments on the proposed collection of information. The FTC has now made these comments available, as a Christmas present for anyone interested in the matter. You can browse through the comments here - or you can just sit back, relax, and wait for PatLit to report on anything interesting hidden among the 68 submissions.

In the meanwhile, my colleagues and I would like to wish Merry Christmas to the readers that celebrate it, and a happy New Year to everyone. May 2014 be a year of peace, happiness, and exciting IP news for all of us!

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