HEVC Advance Patent Pool: What and Whom Do We License?

We License: Devices and Software

We license HEVC Decoders and Encoders (i) in Consumer HEVC Products or (ii) made available for use through Cloud Based Services.

Royalty rates based on three device categories:

  • Mobile Devices (e.g., Mobile Phone, Tablet, Laptop PC
  • Connected Home and Other Devices (e.g., Set-Top Box, Game Console, Blu-ray Player, Desktop PC, non-4K UHD+ TV, Software, Surveillance Cameras, Conferencing Products, Medical Imaging, Digital Signage)
  • 4K UHD+ Television/Display (e.g., UHD-capable televisions, projectors, VR/AR headsets)

  • Primary model is licensing HEVC decoders/encoders installed on devices at date of First Sale
  • Intent is to be paid one royalty per device on First Sale. Multiple HEVC encoders and/or decoders installed in a device prior to the device’s First Sale incur ONLY a single royalty fee at the highest applicable rate upon the device’s First Sale, with limited exceptions
  • Royalty due for HEVC Software Sold separately from a device and for preloaded HEVC pay-to-use software for which a separate payment is due
  • Royalty due for HEVC decoders and encoders used to provide or made available for use through a Cloud-Based Service

We License: Commercial Content Distribution on Physical Digital Media

  • HEVC Content on Physical Digital Media Storage (e.g., Blu-ray discs, external hard drives, etc.)
  • Box sets and bundled HEVC Content owe a separate royalty for each optical disc. For other digital media (e.g., video pack) that contains multiple Titles, a royalty is due for each Title.

What Patent Rights Are Licensed?

  • Our License covers all of our Licensors’ HEVC Standard essential patent claims that they have the right to license(1)
  • Our Patent List identifies Licensor patents that include one or more claims found to be essential to the HEVC Standard by our Independent Patent Evaluators
  • Our Patent List identifies the significant portion(s) of the HEVC Standard to which the essential patent claims map
  • All essential claims are included – even those essential claims in Licensor patents that have not yet been evaluated by our Independent Patent Evaluators

Whom Do We License?

Parties that sell Consumer HEVC Products:

  • Parties that Sell substantially completed devices or software (i.e., ready for sale to an End User) that incorporate one or more HEVC decoders and/or encoders(2)
  • Parties that (a) provide End Users with access to HEVC encoders and/or decoders through the internet or another public or private network or (b) process content at the End User’s request using HEVC encoders and/or decoders where the output is returned to the End User
  • Parties that Sell HEVC Content on Digital Media Storage:
    • Parties that Sell (e.g., commercially distribute) HEVC Content on Physical Digital Media Storage (Blu-ray discs, external hard drives, etc.) to End Users(2)

We Do NOT License:

  • “Commercial Products” primarily intended or marketed to encode or transmit Commercial HEVC Content or provide a Cloud Based Service
  • Non-physical HEVC Content distribution (e.g., internet streaming, cable, over-the-air broadcast, and satellite)

Footnotes:

(1) Except as noted on the HEVC Advance Patent List.
(2) Access Advance reserves the right to seek licenses from any party infringing HEVC Standard essential patents of our Licensors for all their infringing products.  Our primary focus, however, is to (1) license parties selling Branded products to End Users directly or through a Chain of Distribution, and (2) OEM’s and other parties that customarily handle licensing obligations in certain market segments.