MPEG LA, LLC recently announced terms of a joint patent license for the AVC (a/k/a H.264) Standard (ISO/IEC IS 14496-10: Information technology -- Coding of audio-visual objects -- Part 10: Advanced Video Coding \ ITU-T Rec. H.264: Series H: Audiovisual and Multimedia Systems: Infrastructure of audiovisual services -- Coding of moving video: Advanced video coding for generic audiovisual services). Like MPEG LA's other licenses, the AVC Patent Portfolio License is offered for the convenience of the marketplace as an alternative enabling users to access essential intellectual property owned by many patent holders under a single license rather than negotiating licenses with each of them individually. The AVC Patent Portfolio License includes essential patents owned by Columbia Innovations Enterprises; Electronics and Communications Research Institute (ETRI); France Telecom, societe anonyme; Fujitsu Limited; Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.; Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.; Microsoft Corporation; Mitsubishi Electric Corporation; Robert Bosch GmbH; Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.; Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha; Sony Corporation; Toshiba Corporation; and Victor Company of Japan, Limited. MPEG LA's objective is to provide worldwide access to as much AVC essential intellectual property as possible for the benefit of AVC users. Therefore, any party that believes it has essential patents is welcome to submit them for evaluation of their essentiality and inclusion in the License if found essential.
