Welcome to the latest edition of the Sisvel Insights weekly round-up, aggregating news stories, analyses and data points affecting the SEP world that have caught our eye over the past seven days.

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Last Tuesday in Shenzhen, we celebrated the opening of our new Sisvel office with an incredible gathering of friends, partners and thought leaders from across the Chinese IP community. Over 130 guests joined us for the event, most of whom were senior in-house licensing executives from leading Chinese corporates.

This is not the beginning of Sisvel’s China story, but it is an exciting new chapter. As Sisvel China managing director Yixiong Zou said in his opening remarks, we are here to learn, to support and to grow alongside the extraordinary innovation ecosystem in Shenzhen and in China as a whole. A full report on the proceedings is now available on Sisvel Insights. We are most grateful to everyone who took time out of their schedule during China’s always-busy IP Week to celebrate with us – particularly those who travelled for the occasion.

Elsewhere, Nokia secured orders from both the UPC and the Munich Regional Court compelling Geely to withdraw certain legal actions against the Finnish network gear company in China. The Chinese automaker has asked the Intermediate People’s Court of Hangzhou, where it is headquartered, to enforce an interim licence between the two companies while it prepares to make a global FRAND rate determination.

Meanwhile, Ericsson has unveiled proposed changes to ETSI’s IPR Guide to address issues around dispute resolution and SEP self-declarations; while three major Chinese solar companies have formed the photovoltaic industry’s first patent pool.

Please note that the inclusion of a piece in the list below does not signify agreement with what is stated in the linked article – just that we believe it is of interest and worth flagging.

Market

Over 130 guests attended a grand opening event for the new Sisvel office in Shenzhen. Read more (Sisvel Insights). See also IAM 🔒

The Sisvel POS patent pool has welcomed two new licensors: Wilus and Datang Mobile. Read more (Wilus announcement | Datang announcement)

Nokia’s licensing business recorded net sales of €385 million in Q1 – a 10% year-on-year gain on a constant currency basis. Read more (Patrik Hammaren LinkedIn)

A trio of Chinese companies – Trina Solar, JA Solar and JinkoSolar – have launched an industry-first photovoltaic patent pool. Read more (pv magazine)

Toyota has acquired several 4G and 5G-related patents from LG Electronics, USPTO assignments show. Read more (ip fray) 🔒

Legal

Nokia has obtained anti-anti suit injunctions in Germany and from the UPC countering Geely’s bid for an interim cellular SEP licence ruling from the Hangzhou Intermediate People’s Court. Read more (ip fray) 🔒

Pool operator Access Advance wants to file an amicus brief supporting Wilus’ request for a US SEP injunction against Askey. Read more (ip fray) 🔒

Judge Alan Albright, who turned the Western District of Texas into a US patent litigation hotspot, will step down at the end of August to resume legal practice. Read more (Law360) 🔒

A German court has moved closer to enforcing a Broadcom injunction against Renault over ethernet SEPs. Read more (ip fray) 🔒

The England and Wales Court of Appeal has heard arguments in Nokia’s SEP disputes with Acer and ASUS. Read more (MLex) 🔒

Policy & Opinion

Ericsson has suggested changes to the ETSI IPR Guide designed to encourage ADR and promote best practices in SEP declarations. Read more (IAM) 🔒

Patent pools have facilitated hundreds of thousands of licensor-licensee relationships and obviated the need for thousands of potential lawsuits. Read more (ip fray)

In its recently released Technology Transfer Guidelines, the European Commission has chosen not to take a structural position on FRAND rate-setting, SEP valuation or the licensor-implementer balance. Read more (Jim Harlan, LinkedIn)

Court-set patent pool rates could destabilise highly effective licensing programmes and slow the spread of standardised technology. Read more (IAM) 🔒

Strategy & Analysis

The UK Supreme Court is set to hear Tesla v Avanci and InterDigital, a closely watched case that centres on whether courts can set rates for patent pools. Read more (IAM)🔒 See also ip fray

Patent pools bring legal certainty to fragmented SEP markets, says Huawei strategic planning and key projects department head Emil Zhang, pointing to Sisvel’s Wi-Fi Multimode and POS programmes as examples. Read more (ip fray)