Spinco Patent Pool
GSM was largely successful for its early proponents due to their pooling of patents, to the exclusion of those not in the original pool. 15% plus royalty rates for those not into GSM early.
Spinco, being given some essential IPR from QCOM, is now in a position to pool with the 27 or so other claimants to W-CDMA to get the needed patents to produce W-CDMA chips. Spinco will be able to negotiate a zero, or near zero, cost in the patent pool for its needed patents. It also will pay no royalties to QCOM. Spinco is instantly the low cost producer of W-CDMA chips.
Qualcomm, however, can stay with its pledge to not enter a patent pool, and stand outside the pool watching, and collecting royalties on its remaining essential patents.
This creates a patent pool, plus one. This will make W-CDMA essentially equal to CDMA 2000 from a royalty cost standpoint for those in the W-CDMA patent pool. They must pay QCOM 5% for either flavor, but will pool (Zero) for other patents. This is not going to make them happy, as they most likely felt their W-CDMA patents would net them a lower royalty cost from QCOM going forward. Those outside the W-CDMA pool will be forced to pay twice, both to the Pool and to QCOM, making W-CDMA very expensive for them.
This move could be a full chapter in the next edition.
QCOM - Lifeguard of the W-CDMA Pool
Longtime lurker, long Q |
