USIJ Comments on Draft SEP Policy Statement

The Alliance of U.S. Startups and Inventors for Jobs (“USIJ”) responds herein to the invitation dated December 6, 2021 (“Invitation”) to submit public comments regarding a newly released draft policy statement (“2021 Draft”) concerning licensing negotiations and remedies for standards-essential patents (“SEPs”). The 2021 Draft was published jointly by the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), United States Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”), and National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”). USIJ is pleased to have an opportunity to be heard on the latest draft of the proposed “policy statement,” which we note will be the third iteration since 2013 of an advisory statement to courts and other tribunals making remedy determinations for infringement of SEPs subject to a voluntary commitment to provide access to patented technology on fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory (“FRAND”) terms.