Standards and Intellectual Property

Both the IETF and W3C are wrestling with important intellectual property issues. Internet standards developed by both organizations have historically been publicly available on a royalty-free basis, but with increasing regularity, the work of standards groups has slowed because proposed standards implicate technologies covered by software patents. A long-term system to resolve or avoid patent and other IP-related disputes is needed and CDT is following these developments closely. The W3C is actively revising its patent policy, and the leadership of the IETF has indicated that such an effort is on the horizon.

The home page of the W3C Patent Policy Working Group can be found at http://www.w3.org/2001/ppwg/.

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