It is harder still to make securities out of such things as music royalties and patent licence fees.

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According to the Foss Patents blog, which tracks such matters, this is the nineteenth announced patent licence deal Microsoft has secured since 2010 from companies whose products use Google's mobile and laptop operating systems.

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His team at Stanford developed a Wi-Fi antenna for a client who did not want to pay a patent-licence fee to Cisco Systems.

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Holders of SEPs are obliged to licence the patent's use to competitors in return for a fee on so-called fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (Frand) terms.

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Samsung had argued that Apple had failed to licence a patent it owned which describes pressing a button to make a handset describe its display.

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Google was awarded an autonomous car patent in 2011, and secured a Nevada driving licence for its self-drive car in May 2012.

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And part of having your patent incorporated into a standard is that you must licence them on a FRAND (fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory) terms to anyone who asks.

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Although Abbott could probably afford the loss of the Brazilian revenues (0.5% of its total sales) if a compulsory licence were issued, industry representatives and patent-rights advocates fear the precedent-setting effect of such a move.

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Once a patent is registered as being standard-essential, the licence holder must allow any third-party to use the innovation and agree to a fee that is not excessive.

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