MPEG LA Expands Call For Blu-ray Disc Patents

December 12, 2006

In its continued response to marketplace interest in accessing as much essential intellectual property as possible in a single license, MPEG LA, LLC today expanded its call for patents essential to the implementation of the Blu-ray Disc(TM) Standard to include the following specification: System Description Blu-ray Disc(TM) Rewritable Format, Part 3 Audio Visual Basic Specifications, Version 3.0, September 2006 Inclusion of this specification is in addition to other Blu-ray Disc(TM)Specifications encompassed by previous calls for patents issued by MPEG LA (see http://www.mpegla.com/news/n_06-04-05_bluray.pdf and http://www.mpegla.com/news/n_06-07-27_pr.pdf). Patents essential to additional Blu-ray Disc(TM) Specifications may be called for in the future. MPEG LA first announced its plan for facilitating formation of a joint patent portfolio license in a November 2005 news release (see http://www.mpegla.com/news/n_05-11-09_bluray.pdf). Any party that believes it has patents that are essential to the Blu-ray Disc(TM) standard and wishes to join the Blu-ray Disc(TM) Patent Portfolio License is invited to submit them for evaluation by MPEG LA's patent evaluators. Further information, along with terms and procedures governing patent submissions, can be found at http://www.mpegla.com/pid/bluray/. While only issued patents that are essential to the Blu-ray Disc(TM) standard will be included in the license, in order to participate in the license development process, patent applications with claims that their owners believe are essential to the Blu-ray Disc(TM) standard and likely to issue in a patent also may be submitted for an evaluation of essentiality. About MPEG LA, LLC: MPEG LA is the world leader in alternative technology licenses, enabling users to acquire worldwide patent rights necessary for a technology standard or platform from multiple patent holders in a single transaction as an alternative to negotiating separate licenses. Wherever an independently administered one-stop patent license would provide a convenient marketplace alternative to assist users with implementation of their technology choices, the licensing model pioneered and employed by MPEG LA may provide a solution. By balancing patent users' interest in reasonable access with patent owners' interest in reasonable return, MPEG LA creates the opportunity for adoption of new technologies and fuels innovation. MPEG LA's initial licensing program for MPEG-2 digital video compression helped produce the most widely employed standard in consumer electronics history, and the MPEG LA(R) Licensing Model has become the template for addressing other technologies. Today MPEG LA manages licensing programs consisting of essential patents in 57 countries. MPEG LA is an independent licensing administrator; it is not related to any standards agency and is not an affiliate of any patent holder. For more information, please refer to http://www.mpegla.com.

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