11-08-2012, 01:22 PM
3G CELLULAR STANDARDS AND PATENTS
[attachment=31113]
Abstract
At the beginning of 2004, the standards for third
generation (3G) cellular technology were embodied in 483
Technical Specifications published by the two Partnership
Projects: 3GPP and 3GPP2. Corporate members of the
Partnership Projects are encouraged to identify intellectual
property that is essential to implementing the standards. We have
studied 7,796 patents and patent applications declared essential
to the two standards. The patents are clustered in 887 families,
where each family covers one invention. Three quarters of the
declared patents are assigned to four companies. A preliminary
evaluation of one patent from each family suggests that
approximately 21% of the declared patents are actually essential.
This paper presents the distributions of patents declared essential
and patents judged essential according to technical category and
patent ownership.
STANDARDS AND PATENTS
As information technology professionals, we are educated to
seek the best technical solution to the tasks we address.
However, we find that the success of our efforts, as indicated
by the adoption of our contributions, depends on many factors
besides the quality of our work. Two of these factors are
technical standards and intellectual property rights (IPR) to
technology that complements or competes with our own
solutions. Standards can accelerate technology proliferation;
they can also be barriers to innovation [1]. Governments issue
patents to reward innovation and stimulate technology
creation. However, distortions in the patent system can stifle
creativity and block deployment of the best technology [2],
[3]. The problem is especially acute when “… a user needs
access to multiple patented inputs to create a single useful
product.” In these circumstances the patent system can retard,
rather than encourage, innovation [4].
EVOLUTION OF CELLULAR TECHNOLOGY
Cellular telecommunications dates from the 1970s, when
experimental systems demonstrated the technical feasibility of
a radically new approach to telephony. The first commercial
systems appeared in the early 1980s and since then technical
progress has been measured in “generations”. First generation
technology relied on analog frequency modulation to transmit
voice signals. Second generation systems, introduced in the
1990s, transmit speech in digital format. To promote network
security and enable roaming, they employ standard signaling
protocols for communication among base stations, mobile
switching centers and databases. There are two broad
categories of second generation systems, distinguished by their
approaches to multiplexing and multiple access of radio
signals. Some systems employ time division multiple access
(TDMA) and others employ code division (CDMA).
THIRD GENERATION CELLULAR STANDARDS
Among the many types of standards, the ones that specify the
details of telecommunications equipment are in the category of
“compatibility specifications” [14]. Their purpose is to insure
that different types of conforming equipment (for example
cellular telephones and base stations) will operate correctly
when they interact. The technologies covered by 3G cellular
standards reside in three domains: core network, radio access
network, and user equipment. These categories are only
partly reflected in the organizational structure of 3GPP and
3GPP2. Both projects have assigned the formulation of
specifications to Technical Specification Groups (TSG).
However, the definitions of the TSGs are different in the two
projects. The TSGs in 3GPP are concerned with (a) core
network, (b) radio access network, © terminals, and (d)
services and systems aspects [15]. In 3GPP2, the TSGs are (a)
access network interfaces, (b) CDMA2000, © services and
systems aspects, (d) intersystem operations, (e) core network,
and (f) packet data [16].
PATENT CATEGORIES AND OWNERSHIP
After examining one patent from each patent family, we sorted
the patents into 17 technical categories, covering key aspects
of CDMA cellular communications. Examples are (a) CDMA
fundamentals (including spreading codes, physical channels,
and modulation), (b) radio resources management (including
power and rate control), © location management (including
location determination and mobility management), (d) layer 2
(including media access control, error detection, and
retransmission), (e) source coding, (f) channel coding, (g) core
network operations, (h) call management, and (i)
synchronization. Table 3 shows the categories and the number
of WCDMA and CDMA2000 patents in each category. With a
few exceptions the ratios of patents in each category are
similar for the two technologies. The biggest difference is the
large number of electronic circuits patents declared essential to
CDMA2000 (11%), compared to only 3% for WCDMA.
[attachment=31113]
Abstract
At the beginning of 2004, the standards for third
generation (3G) cellular technology were embodied in 483
Technical Specifications published by the two Partnership
Projects: 3GPP and 3GPP2. Corporate members of the
Partnership Projects are encouraged to identify intellectual
property that is essential to implementing the standards. We have
studied 7,796 patents and patent applications declared essential
to the two standards. The patents are clustered in 887 families,
where each family covers one invention. Three quarters of the
declared patents are assigned to four companies. A preliminary
evaluation of one patent from each family suggests that
approximately 21% of the declared patents are actually essential.
This paper presents the distributions of patents declared essential
and patents judged essential according to technical category and
patent ownership.
STANDARDS AND PATENTS
As information technology professionals, we are educated to
seek the best technical solution to the tasks we address.
However, we find that the success of our efforts, as indicated
by the adoption of our contributions, depends on many factors
besides the quality of our work. Two of these factors are
technical standards and intellectual property rights (IPR) to
technology that complements or competes with our own
solutions. Standards can accelerate technology proliferation;
they can also be barriers to innovation [1]. Governments issue
patents to reward innovation and stimulate technology
creation. However, distortions in the patent system can stifle
creativity and block deployment of the best technology [2],
[3]. The problem is especially acute when “… a user needs
access to multiple patented inputs to create a single useful
product.” In these circumstances the patent system can retard,
rather than encourage, innovation [4].
EVOLUTION OF CELLULAR TECHNOLOGY
Cellular telecommunications dates from the 1970s, when
experimental systems demonstrated the technical feasibility of
a radically new approach to telephony. The first commercial
systems appeared in the early 1980s and since then technical
progress has been measured in “generations”. First generation
technology relied on analog frequency modulation to transmit
voice signals. Second generation systems, introduced in the
1990s, transmit speech in digital format. To promote network
security and enable roaming, they employ standard signaling
protocols for communication among base stations, mobile
switching centers and databases. There are two broad
categories of second generation systems, distinguished by their
approaches to multiplexing and multiple access of radio
signals. Some systems employ time division multiple access
(TDMA) and others employ code division (CDMA).
THIRD GENERATION CELLULAR STANDARDS
Among the many types of standards, the ones that specify the
details of telecommunications equipment are in the category of
“compatibility specifications” [14]. Their purpose is to insure
that different types of conforming equipment (for example
cellular telephones and base stations) will operate correctly
when they interact. The technologies covered by 3G cellular
standards reside in three domains: core network, radio access
network, and user equipment. These categories are only
partly reflected in the organizational structure of 3GPP and
3GPP2. Both projects have assigned the formulation of
specifications to Technical Specification Groups (TSG).
However, the definitions of the TSGs are different in the two
projects. The TSGs in 3GPP are concerned with (a) core
network, (b) radio access network, © terminals, and (d)
services and systems aspects [15]. In 3GPP2, the TSGs are (a)
access network interfaces, (b) CDMA2000, © services and
systems aspects, (d) intersystem operations, (e) core network,
and (f) packet data [16].
PATENT CATEGORIES AND OWNERSHIP
After examining one patent from each patent family, we sorted
the patents into 17 technical categories, covering key aspects
of CDMA cellular communications. Examples are (a) CDMA
fundamentals (including spreading codes, physical channels,
and modulation), (b) radio resources management (including
power and rate control), © location management (including
location determination and mobility management), (d) layer 2
(including media access control, error detection, and
retransmission), (e) source coding, (f) channel coding, (g) core
network operations, (h) call management, and (i)
synchronization. Table 3 shows the categories and the number
of WCDMA and CDMA2000 patents in each category. With a
few exceptions the ratios of patents in each category are
similar for the two technologies. The biggest difference is the
large number of electronic circuits patents declared essential to
CDMA2000 (11%), compared to only 3% for WCDMA.