Call for Comments: W3C Royalty-Free Patent Policy Last Call Working Draft

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has published Last Call Working Draft of its Royalty-Free Patent Policy whose goal is to enable W3C Recommendations to be implemented on a royalty-free basis. If this policy is adopted, all who participate in the development of a W3C Recommendation must agree to license essential patent claims (that is, patents that block interoperability) on a royalty-free basis.

W3C's final patent policy will be determined by the feedback we receive from W3C Members and the Web community-at-large. It is critical that W3C hear from those in the Web community who are interested in the final outcome of this policy. Please send comments to <www-patentpolicy-comment@w3.org> by 31 December 2002.

Proposed Policy Keeps Web Standards Open

The primary goal of the proposed policy is to enable W3C Recommendations to be implemented on a royalty-free basis. We also seek to encourage disclosure by both W3C Members and others when they are aware of patents - their own or others - that may be essential to the implementation of W3C Recommendations. In simple terms:

• All who participate in the development of a W3C Recommendation must agree to license essential claims (patents that block interoperability) on a royalty-free (RF) basis
• Viral licensing reciprocity is allowed as a way a requiring that all who take advantage of the W3C RF license also make patents they may hold available to all according to the same RF terms.
• Patent disclosures are required for W3C Working Group participants and anyone else who is aware of patents that may be essential.
• In the event patent claims are identified that are not available royalty-free, a dispute resolution process is provided. Options including designing around the patents, investigating the validity of the patents, or transitioning the work to another organization that is willing to produce RAND (reasonable and non-discriminatory terms) standards.

Our aim is to solve a specific problem - to remove the threat of blocking patents on key components of Web infrastructure. The Policy doesn't require giving up one's entire patent portfolio; it concerns only those patent claims that are essential to implement a standard that one participates in developing at W3C.

Last Call Draft Makes Commitment to Royalty-Free W3C Results

In previous drafts, the Patent Policy Working Group wrestled with issues regarding both royalty-free and royalty-bearing (RAND) technologies being incorporated into W3C Recommendations. With this draft, the Working Group explicitly proposes the following:

• RF Recommendations only are allowed
• All participants must make up-front commitments to RF licenses for Recommendations they participate in developing
• The W3C Patent Policy draft allows participants to retain defensive use of their patents; the RF licensing only applies to technologies essential for implementing the W3C Specification.
• The current draft is considerably less complicated than previous versions.

Public Feedback Urgently Needed: Next Steps Include Broad Review, Decisions in 2003

During the 'Last Call' period, W3C is seeking feedback, both positive and negative, about the proposed policy. Comments should be sent to:

<www-patentpolicy-comment@w3.org> [Public Archive]

Comments must be received by 31 December 2002. Following the Last Call period, the Patent Policy Working Group will produce a final draft proposal for the consideration of the W3C Membership and public. This final proposal - called a Proposed Recommendation at W3C - will be through the standard review process undertaken for all W3C technical Recommendations, concluding in decision by the W3C Director, Tim Berners-Lee about the final policy. The Working Group hopes to advance to Proposed Recommendation in February or March 2003, with a final policy to be adopted by May 2003.