Source: http://www.techlawjournal.com/alert/2012/12/06.asp
Timestamp: 2019-04-20 12:11:44+00:00

Document:
TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,484, December 6, 2012.
Thursday, December 6, 2012, Alert No. 2,484.
12/5. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released an agenda for its event on December 12, 2012, titled "open meeting". This agenda adds two spectrum related items that were not on a previously released tentative agenda.
There are five items on this agenda. First, the FCC is scheduled to adopt a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on small cell use in the 3550-3650 MHz band. This is allocated for federal use, including military radar. Also, this band does not have propagation characteristics suitable for mobile broadband. The concept is to allow shared use by low power small cells, with a range of up to about 200 meters, to provide wireless internet access.
Second, the FCC is scheduled to adopt a Report and Order (R&O) and Further NPRM on expanding the 911, E911 and NG911 regime to text messaging (SMS to 911) and other technologies. This is PS Docket Nos. 11-153 and 10-255.
The FCC adopted a Notice of Inquiry (NOI) [36 pages in PDF] on December 21, 2010. It is FCC 10-200. The FCC adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [81 pages in PDF] on September 22, 2011. It is FCC 11-134.
Also, the FCC might address patent rights in inventions, the use of which the FCC might mandate. Patent infringement concerns may affect deployment of new services. Hypothetically, the FCC might invoke 28 U.S.C. § 1498, which provides in part that "Whenever an invention described in and covered by a patent of the United States is used or manufactured by or for the United States without license of the owner thereof or lawful right to use or manufacture the same, the owner's remedy shall be by action against the United States" in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims "for the recovery of his reasonable and entire compensation for such use and manufacture." Or, the FCC might assert and exercise authority to mandate licensing on fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory (FRAND) terms specified by the FCC.
The following day, December 13, at 9:00 AM, the US Telecom and National Emergency Number Association (NENA) will host an on site and webcast event titled "Breakfast Briefing on Next Generation 9-1-1". See, notice and registration page.
Third, the FCC is scheduled to adopt a R&O on expanding the FCC's universal service tax and subsidy regime for health care providers. This is WC Docket No. 02-60.
Fourth, the FCC is scheduled to adopt a R&O and Order of Proposed Modification regarding service rules for several bands. This is WT Docket No. 12-70, ET Docket No. 10-142, and and WT Docket No. 04-356.
Fifth, the FCC is scheduled to adopt a NPRM regarding service rules for the Advanced Wireless Service (AWS) H block.
The Congress enacted HR 3630 [LOC | WW], the "Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012" in February of 2012. This bill gave the FCC authority to conduct incentive auctions. Among its many other provisions are an instruction, at subsections 6401(b)(1) and (2)(A)&(B), to auction the 1915-1920 MHz and 1995-2000 MHz bands within three years. This NPRM pertains to this directive.
The meeting is scheduled for 1:00 PM on Wednesday, December 12 in the FCC's Commission Meeting Room, TW-C305, 445 12th Street, SW.
12/3. Six Democratic Senators sent a letter [PDF] on November 30 to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) urging perpetuation of the FCC's ancient regulatory regime for ownership of media. On December 3 the FCC solicited further comments, thus effectively postponing its adoption of new rules.
12/5. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed an amicus curiae brief [25 pages in PDF] with the U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) in Apple v. Motorola, regarding the availability of injunctive relief for infringement of a SEP when the patent holder has made FRAND committments.
This is the appeal and cross appeal from the judgment of the U.S. District Court (NDIll) in the case involving claims of patent infringement by plaintiffs Apple and NeXT Software and defendants Motorola and Motorola Mobility (now Google) against each other. Court of Appeals Judge Richard Posner (at left), sitting by designation as the trial court judge, dismissed all of the claims. These appeals followed. See, his June 22, 2012, opinion [38 pages in PDF].
The FTC argues in this brief that the District Court properly applied the holding of the Supreme Court in eBay v. MercExchange in determining that Motorola was not entitled to an injunction, where Motorola had committed to license that patent to anyone willing to accept fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory (FRAND) terms, and hence implicitly acknowledged that a royalty is adequate compensation for a license to use that patent.
The Supreme Court's 2006 opinion in eBay v. MercExchange is also reported at 547 U.S. 388. See also, story titled "Supreme Court Rules on Availability of Injunctive Relief in Patent Cases" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,371, May 16, 2006.
The FTC argues that the hold up, or threat of hold up, of standards essential patents (SEPs) can create problems. It can deter innovation, deter investment, harm consumers, and reduce the value of standard setting. However, these risks are mitigated by fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory (FRAND) commitments.
"However, a royalty negotiation that occurs under the threat of an injunction may be heavily weighted in favor of the patentee in a way that is in tension with the RAND commitment." The FTC brief continues that "the threat of an injunction may allow the holder of a RAND-encumbered SEP to realize royalty rates that reflect the investments firms make to implement the standard, rather than the competitive value of the patented technology, which could raise prices to consumers while undermining the standard-setting process."
The FTC concludes that "Injunctive relief should not be permitted to allow the owner of standard-essential patent subject to a RAND obligation to appropriate for itself the value created by numerous other innovators that build on or contribute to the standard at issue. Insofar as Motorola seeks an injunction not for the purpose of excluding Apple’s products from the market, but to bring Apple to the table to negotiate a favorable royalty, its argument does not support an injunction against a willing licensee. On the contrary, the use of such leverage is the essence of hold-up."
The FTC stated in a release that Commissioner Maureen Ohlhausen vote against approval of this brief. The brief adds in a footnote that Commissioner Thomas Rosch "concurs in the submission of this brief. He is of the view that the issuance of injunctive relief is inappropriate where the patent holder has made a FRAND commitment for a standard essential patent, even if the patentee contends that it has met its FRAND obligation. In his view, a FRAND pledge appears to be, by its very nature, a commitment to license; if so, seeking injunctive relief would be inconsistent with that commitment. Commissioner Rosch thus submits that if a court concludes that a party, or its predecessor in interest, made a FRAND commitment with respect to a SEP, an injunction should be denied for that patent. In his view, the only exception to this is when the licensee refuses to comply with the decision of a federal court or some other neutral arbitrator defining the FRAND terms."
The FTC's Richard Brunell signed the brief.
This case is Apple, Inc. et al. v. Motorola, Inc., et al., U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, App. Ct. Nos. 2012-1548 and 2012-1549, appeals from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, D.C. No. 1:11-cv-08540, Judge Richard Posner presiding.
12/5. Fiona Morton, Deputy Assistant Attorney General For Economic Analysis in the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division, gave a speech [11 pages in PDF] in Brussels, Belgium titled "The Role of Standards in the Current Patent Wars".
She addressed standards essential patents (SEPs), patent holders' commitments to license SEPs on fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory (FRAND) terms, non-SEPs, and hold ups.
"Second, we are in an era of platform competition, where the owner or sponsor of the platform owns or creates only one piece of the ecosystem, and many complementary products are required for the platform to be popular with consumers."
She continued that "Platforms become successful due to scale-generating network effects; the more users of a platform there are, the more complementary products are created, which in turn attracts more users. Furthermore, many platforms create or simply have "lock-in," such as when a consumer’s music collection purchased on one platform cannot be transferred to another. Platforms can also feature "tipping." If the platform doesn’t have enough scale to generate applications or other valuable content, it may not attract more consumers, which will mean that fewer applications developers write for it, fewer consumers buy devices, and the platform dwindles."
"The explosion in the popularity of smart mobile devices is arguably creating a moment where the forces of lock-in and tipping may play a big role. Symmetry and long-run cooperation aren’t relevant in this game the way they may have been in years past. It is therefore critical for players in this marketplace to use every possible tool at their disposal to gain a competitive advantage for their platforms while they have a chance of tipping a platform in their favor or stopping tipping against themselves. OEMs become involved because, as the actual manufacturers of the hardware, they are often the defendants in patent lawsuits. Often involved in this fight are allegations of patent infringement, including, occasionally, SEPs."
She said that "We believe declared SEPs can be a powerful weapon, perhaps enhanced by over declaration, and can be used to harm competition through holdup."
She also reiterated the DOJ's recommendations for processes to be followed by standard setting organizations (SSOs). See also, speech [12 pages in PDF] by Renatta Hesse titled "Six Small Proposals for SSOs Before Lunch", and story titled "DOJ's Hesse Addresses Patents and Standard Setting Organizations" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,466, October 12, 2012.
Non-SEPS and Commercially Essential Patents. She also said that "non-SEPs can also be used to hold up licensees". She noted that with these patents, the holder has not via FRAND commitments "voluntarily given up the right to exclude in most circumstances as part of the bargain for having its technology included in the standard".
Moreover, "Patents that are not essential to practice a standard are numerous and vary greatly in strength. Those with market power can be used in anticompetitive ways, and acquisitions of patents can violate the antitrust laws.
She continued that "Non-standardized technologies differentiate devices, create competition and drive innovation in the marketplace."
"There is also a key difference in business strategy between the two types of patents: when the SEP owner makes a F/RAND commitment, it is explicitly agreeing that users of its IP may compensate the owner with money. With a differentiating patent, by contrast, the strategy of the firm may be to exclude other producers from using the IP in order to drive sales of its own product."
She next tackled the concept of "commercially essential patents". She said first that "it is not clear to me what it means to be commercially essential".
But, she added, "Is the innovation something that consumers just love and that is thought to be essential to marketing a product? If so, exclusion might be an important driver of innovation. If, as a rule, truly innovative features that build on a standard need to be shared with competitors, incentives to innovate could be dulled."
8:15 AM - 3:30 PM. The Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) and George Washington University's (GWU) Institute for International Economic Policy (IIEP) will host an event titled "Can Trade Policies and Agreements Advance Internet Freedom?". Free. Open to the public. Location: GWU, Elliot School of International Affairs, Lindner Commons, 6th floor, 1957 E St., NW.
9:00 AM. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) will hold a closed meeting. See, notice. Location: Room HVC-304, Capitol Visitor Center.
8:00 or 9:00 - 11:00 AM. The President's Export Council will meet. The Department of Commerce (DOC) has advertised the start time as both 8:00 AM and 9:00 AM. See, notice and notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 224, November 20, 2012, Pages 69591-69592. The event will be webcast. Location: undisclosed.
9:00 AM - 4:45 PM. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will host a workshop titled "The Big Picture: Comprehensive Online Data Collection". See, event web site. Location: FTC Conference Center, 601 New Jersey Ave., NW.
9:30 AM - 12:15 PM. The Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies will to host an event titled "Conference to Examine Impact of Election on U.S. Broadband Policy". The speakers will be Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Ajit Pai (FCC Commissioner), Michael McCurry, Rich Galen, Kathy Brown (Verizon), and James Cicconi (AT&T). Location: Phoenix Center, Suite 440, 5335 Wisconsin Ave. NW.
10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of S 1223 [LOC | WW], the "Location Privacy Protection Act of 2011", sponsored by Sen. Al Franken (D-MN).The agenda also again includes consideration of the nominations of Katherine Failla (USDC/SDNY), Troy Nunley (USDC/EDCal), Sheri Chappell (USDC/MDFl), Pamela Ki Mai Chen (USDC/EDNY), and Mark Barnett (U.S. Court of International Trade). See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.
10:30 AM. Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) will hold a news conference regarding media consolidation. Location: Senate Studio, Room S-325, Capitol Building.
12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The National Economists Club will host a lunch. The speaker will be Robert Atkinson (ITIF). Prices vary. See, notice and registration page. Location: ITIF/ITIC, Suite 610A, 1101 K St., NW.
12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The Federalist Society will host a lunch and panel discussion titled "Private Attorneys and the War on Terror". The speakers will be Nitsana Leitner (Israel Law Center), Steven Bradbury (Dechert), and Stephen Vladeck (American University law school). See, notice and registration page. Free. No CLE credits. Location: National Press Club, 13th Floor, 529 14th St., NW.
2:00 - 2:30 PM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will hold a news conference by teleconference to release and discuss the ITIF's report titled "2012 State New Economy Index". The speakers will be Rob Atkinson (ITIF) and Luke Stewart (ITIF). For call in information, contact Alexis Fearon at afearon at itif dot org or 202-524-4390.
Day three of a five day meeting titled "National Conference of State Legislatures Fall Forum". At 3:15 PM there will be a panel titled "Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection". See, event web site. Location: Jefferson West, Concourse Level, Washington Hilton, 1919 Connecticut Ave., NW.
8:30 AM. The Department of Labor's (DOL) Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is scheduled to release its November 2012 unemployment data.
1:00 PM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) President's Export Council's (PEC) Subcommittee on Export Administration (SEA) will hold a partially closed meeting. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 225, November 21, 2012, at Pages 69789-69790. Location: DOC, Room 4830, Hoover Building, 14th Street between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues, NW.
9:00 AM - 5:30 PM. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will hold a workshop titled "Patent Assertion Entity Activities". See, notice and agenda. Location: FTC, Satellite Building and Conference Center, 601 New Jersey Ave., NW.
1:00 - 4:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Technological Advisory Council will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 227, November 26, 2012, at Pages 70434-70435. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.
Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [57 pages in PDF] regarding cable TV technical rules. The FCC adopted and released this item on August 3, 2012. It is FCC 12-86 in MB Docket No. 12-217. See, notice in the Federal Register Vol. 77, No. 195, October 9, 2012, at Pages 61351-61375. See also, TLJ story titled "FCC Adopts NPRM Regarding Cable TV Technical Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,421, August 5, 2012.
9:00 - 10:30 PM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "Why America Needs a National Network for Manufacturing Innovation". The speakers will be Robert Atkinson (ITIF), Dennis Dotson (Dotson Iron Castings), David Hart (George Mason University), and Celia Merzbacher ( Semiconductor Research Corporation). See, notice. Location: Room 200, Capitol Visitor Center.
10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship will meet. No webcast. This event is open to the public only via teleconference. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 234, December 5, 2012, at Page 72322. Location: DOC, Room __, 1401 Constitution Ave., NW.
12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast and teleconferenced panel discussion titled "Nuts and Bolts of International Cartel Enforcement". The speakers will be Kevin Goldstein (Weil Gotshal), Jennifer Chippendale (Sheppard Mullin), Patrick Harrison (Sidley Austin), and Michelle Rindone (DOJ Antitrust Division). Free. No CLE credits. See, notice.
1:00 - 2:30 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast and teleconferenced panel discussion titled "Insuring for Data Security Threats: Everything a Business Lawyer Wants to Know But Is Afraid To Ask". The speakers will be John Black (Boundas Skarzynski Walsh & Black), Erich Bublitz (Admiral Insurance Company), Janice Hugener, Winston Krone (Kivu Consulting), and Edward Morse (Creighton University School of Law). Prices vary. CLE credits. See, notice.
1:30 - 3:00 PM. TIME. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast and teleconferenced panel discussion titled "America Invents Act: Practical Considerations for Practitioners and Inventors". The speakers will be Jonathan Sick (McAndrews Held & Malloy), Robert Titus (Eli Lilly and Company), Alysa Youngson (MH2 Technology Law Group), Nathan Prepelka (The Webb Law Firm). Prices vary. CLE credits. See, notice.
3:00 - 4:30 PM. The Copyright Office (CO) will host a panel discussion titled "The Authors Guild on the Occasion of Its 100th Anniversary: History and Future of the Professional Author". The speakers will be Scott Turow (President of the Authors Guild), John Cole (Library of Congress), Robert Massie (former President of the Authors Guild), and Peter Smith (Codex Group). See, notice. Location: Coolidge Auditorium, Jefferson Building, 101 Independence Ave., SE.
6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a program titled "IP Year in Review Series 2012: Part 2: The New Patent Law and More". The speakers will be Andrew Sommer (Winston & Strawn) and Bradley Wright (Banner & Witcoff). The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. CLE credits. See, notice. For more information, call 202-626-3488. The DC Bar has a history of barring reporters from its events. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.
Deadline for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) to submit its annual report to the Congress on the People's Republic of China's (PRC) compliance with its World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 161, August 20, 2012, at Pages 50206-50207. See also, story titled "OUSTR to Receive Comments and Hold Hearing on PRC Compliance with WTO Obligations" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,431, August 17, 2012.
Deadline to submit to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) replies to oppositions to the petitions for reconsideration of its First Report and Order [67 pages in PDF] regarding spectrum for the operation of Medical Body Area Networks (MBAN). This R&O is FCC 12-54 in ET Docket No. 08-59. See, petition and petition. See also, FCC Public Notice, and notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 222, November 16, 2012, at Pages 68721-68722.
TIME? The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Communications and Technology will hold a hearing titled "Keeping the New Broadband Spectrum Law on Track". The witnesses will be the five FCC Commissioners. See, notice. Location: __.
10:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold an event titled "open meeting". There are three five items on the agenda: (1) NPRM on small cell use in the 3550-3650 MHz band, (2) R&O and FNPRM on expanding the 911 regime to text messaging and other technologies, (3) R&O on expanding the FCC's universal service tax and subsidy regime for health care providers, (4) R&O and Order of Proposed Modification regarding service rules for several bands, and (5) NPRM regarding service rules for the AWS H block. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, Room TW-C305, 445 12th St., NW.
Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Wireless Telecommunications Bureau's (WTB) and Office of Engineering and Technology's (OET) Public Notice (PN) [8 pages in PDF] regarding refreshing the record in its wireless microphones proceedings. See, January 2010 R&O and FNPRM [103 pages in PDF] (FCC 10-16). The FCC released this PN on October 5, 2012. It is DA 12-1570 in WT Docket Nos. 08-166 and 08-167 and ET Docket No. 10-24. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 204, October 22, 2012, at Pages 64446-64450. See also, 2008 NPRM and Order (FCC 08-188) and story titled "FCC Releases NPRM on Wireless Microphones Operating in 700 MHz Band" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,817, August 21, 2008. See also, story titled "FCC Seeks More Comments on Wireless Microphones" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,466, October 23, 2012.
Day one of a two day event hosted by the Practicing Law Institute (PLI) and the Federal Communication Bar Association (FCBA) titled "30th Annual Institute on Telecommunications Policy & Regulation". The price to attend ranges from free to $1,595. See, registration form. Location: Washington Hilton, 1919 Connecticut Ave., NW.
9:00 - 10:30 AM. The US Telecom and National Emergency Number Association (NENA) will host an on site and webcast event titled "USTelecom Breakfast Briefing on Next Generation 9-1-1". The speakers will be Brian Fontes, Trey Forgety, Roger Hixson and Ty Wooten (all of NENA), and Bob Gojanovich (TCS). Registration is required. See, notice and registration page. Location: USTelecom, Suite 400, 607 14th St., NW.
9:00 - 10:30 PM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "China's Indigenous Innovation Policy and the Semiconductor Industry". The speakers will be Robert Atkinson (ITIF), Dieter Ernst (East West Center), Brian Toohey ( Semiconductor Industry Association), and Alan Wolff (McKenna Long & Aldridge). See, notice. Location: ITIF/ITIC, Suite 610A, 1101 K St., NW.
10:00 AM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) North American Numbering Council will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 223, Monday, November 19, 2012, at Page 69453. The FCC has also stated that this event will be at 9:30 AM. Location: FCC, Room 5-C162, 445 12th St., SW.
12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Obviousness Since KSR: Views From the Bench and the Bar Regarding Recent Developments in the Law". See, 2007 opinion of the Supreme Court, and story titled "Supreme Court Rules on Patent Obviousness in KSR v. Teleflex" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,576, May 7, 2007. The speakers will be former Judge Paul Michel, Theodore Essex (Administrative Law Judge, U.S. International Trade Commission), Roderick McKelvie (Covington & Burling), Jonas Anderson (American University law school), and Jeffrey Fougere (Sterne Kessler). The price to attend ranges from $25 to $35. No CLE credits. See, notice. For more information, call 202-626-3463. The DC Bar has a history of barring reporters from its events. Location: Sterne Kessler, 9th floor, 1100 New York Ave., NW.
12:30 - 1:45 PM. The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) will host an event titled "China, Japan, South Korea Trilateral Cooperation: Implications for Northeast Asian Politics and Order". See, notice. Location: CSIS, B1 C conference room, 1800 K St., NW.
LOCATION CHANGE. 3:00 PM. The Tech Freedom (TF) and Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) will host a panel discussion titled "CopyRIGHT: Can Free Marketeers Agree On Copyright Reform?". The speakers will be Berin Szoka (TF), Jerry Brito (Mercatus Center at George Mason University), Larry Downes, Geoffrey Manne (Lewis & Clark Law School), and Adam Mossoff (George Mason University School of Law), and Ryan Radia (CEI). Location: Room HC-8, Capitol Building Room 1310, Longworth Building.
6:00 - 8:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled "Annual Chairman's Dinner". Prices vary. Location: Washington Hilton, 1919 Connecticut Ave., NW.
Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (PSHSB) in response to its Public Notice (PN) regarding Next Generation 911 (NG911) services. This PN is DA 12-1831 in PS Docket Nos. 10-255, 11-153, and 12-333. The FCC released it on November 13, 2012.

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