On January 13, DOJ issued its first Business Review Letter on a
non-standard essential patent (SEP) pool to the University
Technology Licensing Program (UTLP), a consortium of research
universities. In the letter, DOJ announced its intention not to
challenge a patent pooling program that aggregates and licenses
patents in the physical sciences owned by the participating
universities.
The UTLP Business Review Letter is a significant development for
owners of non-SEP patents that intend to pool their patents with
other licensors. It demonstrates that DOJ is willing to consider
favorably proposed pools that apply existing SEP pool guidance, as
feasible, to non-SEP settings, especially when licensors offer
robust safeguards against including substitutable patents and a
licensing structure that does not require full portfolio
licensing.
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