IPCom

Background

IPCom GmbH & Co. KG is an intellectual property (IP) rights licensing and technology R&D company, which supports companies with asserting patent rights and concluding patent license agreements on FRAND (fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory) terms. Its R&D team actively contributes to communication standards setting body 3GPP, while managing IPCom's global patent portfolio.

IPCom holds over 200 patent families in the field of mobile communications, with more than 1,000 patents registered in Europe, the US and Asia, most of which have been granted. IPCom has negotiated and closed a number of significant license contracts and settlement agreements with high-profile, global companies in the mobile and telecoms space. These include a case pending with the German Supreme Court, against Nokia and HTC, whom IPCom states have infringed its mobile telecoms European Patent (EP 1 841 268) (the 100A).

Committed to the principles of FRAND, fair play and competitive advantage, IPCom also offers consulting services to companies in the telecoms space, with the aim of levelling the playing field and ensuring those behind the development of standard essential patents (SEPs) are fairly rewarded for their technologies and work.

IPCom is headquartered in Pullach, Munich, Germany, and operates on a global basis.

History

In 2007, IPCom acquired a portfolio of mobile technology patents from Robert Bosch GmbH. This comprises more than 160 patent families in 2G, 2.5G, 3G and LTE technologies, 30 of which are SEPs covering the USA, Europe and Asia. Technologies covered in the portfolio span areas including user interface, MMS and digital rights management, applications, synchronization and packet data transmission.

In acquiring the Bosch patent portfolio, IPCom also acquired telecoms European Patent (EP 1 841 268) (the 100A), which in January 2018 was found by England’s Court of Appeal to be standard-essential and mandatory to the UMTS standard. 100A relates to controlling how UMTS mobile phones gain initial access to a network. Since then, IPCom has welcomed requests from handset manufacturers, service providers, and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to obtain FRAND license agreements.

Through ongoing R&D activity, IPCom has also developed its own global patent portfolio, with numerous applications currently pending.

Research and development

IPCom officially announced its R&D department in November 2018, but has been engaging in extensive R&D activities since 2014. The R&D team has contributed to standards bodies, and worked to develop key milestones in mobile communications standards.

Primary areas of research include radio access, network architecture, application layer/IP-based networks, and security. The department is currently focused on the development of the next generation communication standard, 5G, as well as IoT technologies.

IPCom's R&D activity has resulted in the development of over 200 patent families including 35 patent families that are standard-essential for the key mobile communications standards of 2G (GMS), 2.5G (GPRS), 3G (UMTS) and LTE, which comprise part of the company’s global patent portfolio.

IP Consulting Services

IPCom's Consulting Services sector was created to educate and advise companies on the IP patent process, as well as to offer practical support in terms of R&D, patenting and monetizing IP. IPCom's Consulting Services are supported by its R&D activity, and via partnerships with legal professionals provide clients with the guidance and consultation needed to deliver new patents.

Operations are overseen by a team which includes a number of legal experts who can assist clients with four key processes: IP assessment, due diligence, documentation and assertion. Services are aimed at supporting SMEs and start-ups which may lack the required in-house resources, experience and finance to develop, patent and monetize their ideas.

The creation of IPCom's IP Consulting Services was driven by the company’s objective of levelling the playing field in terms of access to patent development and monetization. Reflecting IPCom's long-held commitment to FRAND principles, the company is working to re-distribute the power traditionally held by some major technology firms when it comes to negotiating IP licenses. Through its IP Consulting Services, IPCom is opening up access to processes and resources crucial to developing and benefitting from technological innovation.

Corporate Social Responsibility

IPCom has an active Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme, including a position as Premium Partner of Klinik-Clowns e.V., a charity which organizes visits by professional clowns to children’s hospital wards, nursing homes, and palliative care and therapy centers. Founded in 1997, Klinik-Clowns e.V. has organized over 30,000 visits covering 95 facilities, and operates across Germany.

External links

• IPCom
• Antitrust: Commission welcomes IPCom's public FRAND declaration
• Klinik-Clowns