Patent Office Partners With WIPO on Standard Essential Patents

The US Patent and Trademark Office and the World Intellectual Property Organization are partnering to facilitate the resolution of standard essential patent disputes, according to an announcement on Thursday.

PTO Director Kathi Vidal and WIPO Director General Daren Tang signed a five-year agreement earlier this week for the agencies to cooperate on using arbitration and mediation resources to ease the resolution of SEP-related disputes. They also agreed to reach out to stakeholders on joint collaborative programs and services.

Standard essential patents have been a contentious topic in the US. There has been uncertainty in the past decade over the circumstances ...