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Ryan-Stephenson Ryan-Stephenson

is an Intellectual Property associate in the Washington office of Hogan Lovells, where he focuses his practice on patent, trademark, and copyright litigation, patent prosecution, and patent licensing matters. Ryan also litigates patent and trademark disputes and provides counseling in the automotive, medical device, agriculture, software, and mobile device spaces.

For more information or to contact Ryan, please visit his Firm Profile Page.

Recent Articles by Ryan-Stephenson Ryan-Stephenson

FTC v. Qualcomm: Court Requires Licensing of Standard Essential Patents to Competitors

The Qualcomm decision is unique in that it appears to be the first decision to require a SEP holder to license its patented technology to its competitors, and not just its downstream customers, on FRAND terms.  This decision casts doubt on the longstanding practice, common in industries such as the telecommunication and automotive industries, in which SEP holders seek to secure “FRAND” licenses with downstream companies that make finished products, while refusing to license (or licensing on non-FRAND terms) those same SEPs to their competitors or other companies further up the supply chain (such as component suppliers).  The decision also emphasizes U.S. courts’ focus on the express language of SSOs’ IPR policies and the willingness to review the SSO guidelines in interpreting the agreements SEP holders enter into with SSOs.  In this regard, the decision may bode well for SEP implementers, given the court’s broad understanding of what it means to “practice” a relevant standard and its view that SEP holders’ FRAND obligations extend to all potential licensees, irrespective of their position in the supply chain.