Tim Pohlmann, Ph.D. Image

Tim Pohlmann, Ph.D.

CEO & Founder

IPLytics

Tim Pohlmann is the CEO and founder of IPlytics. He earned his doctoral degree with the highest distinction from the Berlin Institute of Technology, with a dissertation on patenting and coordination in standardization. He then went on to work as a post-doctoral researcher and consultant for the Law and Economics of Patents Group at CERNA, MINES ParisTech.

In his work as an economist and consultant, Dr Pohlmann was confronted with the challenge that standards databases such as those of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers have no real, meaningful connection with comprehensive global patent databases. He realized that if we are to keep pace with the next technology revolution, then as IP professionals, we need to rethink – even revolutionize – how we approach both patent and standards data, to provide business-ready knowledge for actionable decision making across our organizations.

Dr Pohlmann founded IPlytics with the vision of creating the first solution on the market to bring together comprehensive, highly indexed technical standards information, global patents, declared SEPs, patent pool and technical standards contribution data, to provide industry-leading analysis on the past, present and future of standards-essential technology. Unlike other tools that are overly complex, IPlytics provides fast, intuitive access to patents and standards to empower the user to strategically align patent portfolios to protect innovations and proactively engage in continuous strategic portfolio development as it relates to SEP assets, for initiatives such as licensing, acquisitions and joining patent pools, or simply to understand the respective positions of the competition.

Dr Pohlmann has been actively involved in preparing empirical studies for the European Commission, the World Intellectual Property Organization and the German federal government on declared patents, standards contributions, patent transfers and patent pooling behavior. He is also the author of several peer-reviewed economist journal articles, several IAM magazine articles and some of the most-read IAM industry reports.

Recent Articles by Tim Pohlmann, Ph.D.

Navigating SEP Determination Challenges with Quality Claim Charts

When licensing standard essential patents (SEPs), the SEP licensor and the standard implementer (also known as the SEP licensee), go through two phases of negotiation. The first phase is the technical phase, followed by the second phase, the commercial discussion. In the technical phase, the SEP licensor must provide evidence that at least one patent of its portfolio is valid and standard essential. This is done by providing rigorously conducted claim charts that map claims against the standard’s sections, providing evidence that all claim elements read on the technical standard specification. Typically, only a few claim charts are needed in this first technical phase, since only one patent must be valid and essential to make the case that the standard implementing party is infringing. The second phase, the commercial discussion, is much more complex. Here, the SEP owner must provide evidence of the value of its SEP portfolio for a given standard supporting why the proposed royalty rate is FRAND (fair reasonable and non- discriminatory).

The SEP Couch, Episode 7: Examining the U.S. Policy Perspective on SEPs

Jamie L. Simpson is the Chief Policy Officer and Counsel for the Council for Innovation Promotion (C4IP) and has previously served as Chief Counsel for the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet, and in various roles at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). In the latest episode of The SEP Couch, Tim Pohlmann spoke with Simpson about  how IP is dealt with in the United States and, in particular, the topic of standard essential patents (SEPs), and explained that the situation is certainly more complicated than is appreciated from the outside.