Transformational technology shifts are never easy. In fact, one of the things that has made them difficult -- and mobile wireless is a prime example -- is that the standardization process can be contentious to the point of creating industry fragmentation. This was true in 3G when the world saw competing CDMA and GSM networks develop, and, for those of us familiar with such things, it has always been amazing how even within “standards” there are different interpretations. Watching this brings to mind:
- An old U.S. adage: “different strokes for different folks”
- My favorite Chinese fortune cookie saying: “same bed different dreams”
Seeking to have global 4G deployment not replicate the (I will be kind here) messiness of the past, the Board of NGMN (Next Generation Mobile Networks), at its recent meeting in China, reviewed on-going activities to launch an LTE patent pool. BRAVO!
This is a welcome relief on many fronts, not the least of which are the acceleration of LTE adoption and a foundation for the rationalization of business relationships to avoid possible/probable and totally unnecessary patent wars down the road.
About NGMN
So who is NGMN? Formed in 2006, the NGMN Alliance currently comprises 63 Partners from telecommunications industry and research: 18 mobile network operators (Members), 42 vendors/ manufacturers (Sponsors), and 3 universities or non-industrial research institutes (Advisors). Its vision and mission are:
- Vision: To provide a platform for innovation by moving towards one integrated network for the seamless introduction of mobile broadband services.
- Mission: to serve as a forum to share, assess, and drive aspects of mobile broadband technologies focusing on LTE & EPC (Evolved Packet Core) and its evolution....providing a coherent view (to standards boides and the industry) of what the operator community is going to require for successful deployment and in order to deliver mobile broadband technology quickly and cost-effectively and serve the benefits of the end-user.
Board recommendation
The NGMN Board in 2010 conducted a Request for Information (RFI) on LTE patent pool administrators. After its meeting in China, the Board issued a statement that recommends: it feels:
“All stakeholders in the mobile industry with an interest in developing an effective LTE patent pool accelerate its creation to avoid further delays within LTE licensing. In order to reach the best possible transparency and predictability, the Board of the NGMN Alliance is encouraging all interested parties to agree on one single patent pool that promotes reasonable royalties, offers certainty on the availability of the patents' license and creates a framework for diligent evaluation of their essentiality. Setting royalty rates is not within the mission of the Board of NGMN Alliance. The patents deemed essential in an LTE patent pool should have their value established by the industry and not solely by any one company. Also, the participants involved in developing the pricing for the LTE patent pool should be sensitive and set a reasonable rate and not seek a premium rate.”
The statement speaks for itself.
Whether the call for action, including the urgency of behind it, gets traction or whether competitive business interests block the need for collaborating on these matters is certainly the object of much speculation. One can only hope that this time the industry decides to compete in the services market and not on infrastructure and intellectual property issues.
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Peter Bernstein is a technology industry veteran, having worked in multiple capacities with several of the industry's biggest brands, including Avaya, Alcatel-Lucent, Telcordia, HP, Siemens, Nortel, France Telecom, and others, and having served on the Advisory Boards of 15 technology startups. To read more of Peter's work, please visit his columnist page.
Edited by
Rich Steeves
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