The 3G Licensing entity (3GLL), the licensing administrator of the W-CDMA patent licensing program, is expected to lower the licensing fees levied on 3G handsets manufactured by Taiwan makers, according to sources at the Technology Transfer and Service Center (TTSC) of the government-backed Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI).
Currently, Taiwan makers are paying a licensing fee of US$2-3 on average for each of 3G handsets using patented technologies owned by 3GLL member companies, which include Fujitsu, KPN, Mitsubishi Electric, NEC, NTT DoCoMo, NTT, Sharp and Siemens, the sources noted.
The amount of the licensing fee may be cut by at least US$1 per piece, when representatives of 3GLL visit Taiwan next month for a discussion of a preferential licensing agreement with local handset makers, the sources indicated.
The 3GLL currently holds a total of 211 patents, or about 20%, of related 3G technologies, while the most of the rest of 80% of patented technologies are held, respectively, by InterDigital, Qualcomm, Nokia and Ericsson, the sourced said, noting that ITRI itself holds 155 related 3G patents.
Article translated by Steve Shen and edited by Chris Hall
