Welcome to the latest edition of the Sisvel Insights weekly round-up, aggregating news stories, analyses and data points affecting the SEP world that have caught our eye over the past seven days  

Just over a year since it opened for business, the Unified Patent Court has awarded its first-ever permanent injunction. The decision of the Düsseldorf Local Division may well provide pointers on how issues will be handled in future cases.  

Elsewhere, both InterDigital and Nokia announced important new licensing deals, while several members of the Access Advance HEVC patent pool have launched infringement actions against Roku. There was also a Sisvel Insights round-up of the second quarter’s big patent transactions; and, of course, plenty more besides.    

Please note that inclusion of a piece in the list below does not signify agreement with what is stated in the linked article, just that we believe it is of interest and worth pointing out.     

Legal 

The first-ever permanent injunction award at the UPC has been handed down by the Düsseldorf Local Division.  Rapid Reaction - Analysis of the first ever permanent injunction at the UPC as the Düsseldorf Local Division issues a final decision, Eden Winlow (bristows.com) 

It has been reported that Samsung and DT Mobile have settled their multi-jurisdictional SEP infringement dispute. ChinaIPToday.com - Samsung and DT Mobile settle patent dispute 

A jury in Marshall, Texas hit Verizon with a $847 million damages award over 4G/5G-related patents owned by an NPE. It’s the largest patent verdict of the year so far and could also implicate the telecom’s equipment suppliers. $847 million patent verdict against Verizon; Ericsson on extended receiving end of $583M part, fighting patent at PTAB jointly with Nokia – ip fray 

Access Advance announced that members of its HEVC patent pool have filed patent infringement complaints against Roku, a US maker of streaming devices. Access Advance HEVC Licensors Seek Level Playing Field by Bringing Patent Infringement Suit(s) - Access Advance 

Market 

InterDigital signed a wide-ranging licence agreement with Google covering cellular, Wi-Fi and HEVC patents as applied in Pixel smartphones, Fitbit wearables and other consumer electronic devices. InterDigital - Press Release 

Nokia has agreed a multi-year licence deal which will see the company receive royalty payments from a direct-to-consumer video streaming platform for the use of its patented multimedia technology. Arvin Patel | LinkedIn 

Dolby’s acquisition of GE Licensing was the big Q2 patent transaction story, but there was other deal activity in the video space, too. Sisvel | Patent transactions watch: video assets are all the rage   

Longhorn IP subsidiary L2 Mobile Technologies LLC reached a settlement with Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus, ending a Texas patent suit over 4G-related technologies. L2 MOBILE TECHNOLOGIES REACHES SETTLEMENT WITH ONEPLUS (longhornip.com) 

Policy 

The Standards Coordination Office of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has announced $15 million funding for the creation of a Standardization Center of Excellence to support US standardisation efforts for critical and emerging technologies. Notice of Funding Opportunity for Standardization Center of Excellence (govdelivery.com) 

Analysis/Opinion 

Aggregate royalties paid to Ericsson, InterDigital, Nokia and Qualcomm declined by 28% in nominal terms from 2015 to 2023, while the value of total royalty payments eroded an additional 22% in real terms after inflation over the same period. IP finance: Declining SEP royalties payments yield rates significantly below licensors’ headline figures  

The top-down approach to royalty rate-setting outlined in the proposed EU SEP licensing regulation would significantly redirect royalty flows from Europe and the US to China. IP finance: European Commission’s proposed top-down approach would massively reallocate SEP royalties to China 

The Chinese framework for SEP injunctions gives significant weight to degree-of-interest imbalance between the parties, sufficiency of money damages and public interest factors.  How IWNCOMM v Apple set the benchmark for SEP injunctions 

A recent UPC case centred on the Qi wireless charging standard illustrates a significant failing of the EU’s pending SEP regulation. EU SEP Regulation’s market power flaw exposed by Qi lawsuits in UPC, Germany: Commission and Parliament got it wrong – ip fray