However, the FTC did rule that Google must stop blocking the use of standard essential patents by competitors.
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Moreover, our decision included a complaint against Google for misconduct involving standard essential patents it acquired from Motorola Mobility.
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Google has said it will charge "fair and reasonable" rates to companies that need to use its standard essential patents.
Standard essential patents are ones that are critical to industry standards, for example, the technology that allows devices such as smartphones and tablets to connect to the internet over wi-fi.
So here Apple suggests that Motorola lay down its standard essential patents and the injunctive relief they offer, worldwide, while Apple still gets to use its weapons and shoot at will?
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Earlier this month, the companies exchanged proposals about hammering out some sort of global licensing agreement over standard essential patents, and both seem to agree that binding arbitration is the way to go.
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The FTC decision is technically not binding for other businesses, but it is likely to be used to set some new rules of the road for the licensing of standard essential patents across the technology sector as well as in other industries.
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In addition to the one over licensing fees and a case in Germany involving standard essential patents, Google has maintained legal action against Microsoft in the ITC over a patent relating to a wireless peer-to-peer network, which is not a standard essential patent.
Google also agreed not to seek injunctions against rivals using standard and essential patents.
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The ITU's roundtable discussing the controversy over standard-essential patents has wrapped up its first day, and surprise -- there wasn't immediate harmony.
"We are seeing an unwelcome trend in today's marketplace to use standard- essential patents to block markets, " said the ITU secretary general Hamadoun Toure when the event was announced.
The dispute revolves around the use of what are known as standard-essential patents (SEPs) - patents that are deemed essential to the operation of standards such as mobile phone signal.
The FTC said the vote to accept the consent agreement package containing the proposed consent order relating to standard-essential patents for public comment was 4-1, with Commissioner Maureen Ohlhausen voting no.
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Certain companies kept to their view that bans over standard-essential patents hurt innovation, while others were adamant that bans were harmless and potentially necessary -- you can probably guess who's on each side.
It was almost a year ago to the day that the European Commission began investigating Motorola over reported abuse of its standard-essential patents (SEPs), and now the regulators have a little more to say on the matter.
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