The role of the European Commission in the development of the ETSI IPR policy and the nature of FRAND in standardization

Abstract

There is a large body of research on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) focused on the licensing of Standard Essential Patents (SEPs) after a standard has been released to the public and implemented into products, but surprisingly little attention has been given to important role FRAND plays in the development of standards themselves. This chapter provides an overview of the European Commission’s (EC) involvement in the development of the European Telecommunications Standard Institute’s (ETSI) IPR Policy which illuminates on the vital role that FRAND plays in the process of standards development.