[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 174 (Monday, September 11, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62349-62351]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-19667]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
[Docket No.: PTO-C-2023-0034]
Joint ITA-NIST-USPTO Collaboration Initiative Regarding
Standards; Notice of Public Listening Session and Request for Comments
AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Department of
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of public listening session; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The International Trade Administration (ITA) creates
prosperity by strengthening the international competitiveness of U.S.
industry, promoting trade and investment, and ensuring fair trade and
compliance with trade laws and agreements. The National Institute of
Standards and Technology (NIST) promotes U.S. innovation and industrial
competitiveness by advancing standards, and technology in ways that
enhance economic security and improve our quality of life. The United
States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) plays an important role in
incentivizing and protecting innovation, including innovations
contributed to international standards bodies. In May 2023, the White
House announced the United States Government National Standards
Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology (``the Strategy''),
which, among other things, seeks to strengthen U.S. engagement in
standards for critical and emerging technologies. As a means to further
the implementation of the Strategy, and pursuant to a Request for
Information on Implementation of the United States Government National
Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology published by
NIST (Docket No. NIST-2023-0005), ITA, NIST, and the USPTO (``the
Agencies'') are initiating a listening session with stakeholders
focused on issues at the intersection of standards and intellectual
property. The Agencies are seeking stakeholder input on the current
state of U.S. firm participation in standard setting, and the ability
of U.S. industry to readily adopt standards to grow and compete,
especially as that relates to the standardization of critical and
emerging technologies.
DATES: The public listening session will be held on Wednesday,
September 20, 2023, from 1 to 5 p.m. ET. Persons seeking to speak at
the listening session must attend in person and register by 5 p.m. on
September 13, 2023. Persons seeking to attend, either in person or
virtually but not speak at the event, must register by September 18,
2023. Seating is limited for in-person attendance. Written comments
will be accepted until September 29, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Public Listening Session: A public listening session focused
on issues at the intersection of standards and intellectual property
will take place, in person, in the Clara Barton Auditorium at the USPTO
headquarters, 600 Dulany Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. The session will
also be available via live feed for those wishing to attend remotely.
Registration is required for both in-person and virtual attendance.
Information on registration is available at https://www.uspto.gov/about-us/events/public-listening-session-innovating-ideas-standards-and-intellectual-property. Registrants must indicate whether they are
registering as a listen-only attendee or as a speaker participant.
Requests to participate as a speaker must include:
1. The name of the person desiring to participate;
2. The organization(s) that person represents, if any;
3. Contact information (address, telephone number, and email); and
4. Information on the specific question(s) of interest to the
speaker (or their organization) and identification of the primary
question of interest.
Speaking slots are limited; preference will be given to speakers
wishing to address one of the questions raised in this request for
comments. We will attempt to group speakers by topics relating to the
questions. Topics and speakers will be announced before the public
listening session. The agencies have a strong preference for speakers
to attend in person. Speakers are required to submit their written
remarks for the listening session in advance through the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov. We will inform each speaker
in advance of their assigned time slot. If we receive more requests to
speak than time allows and are unable to assign a time slot as
requested, we will invite the requestor to submit written comments.
Time slots will be at least five minutes but may be longer, depending
on the number of speakers registered. A panel of ITA, NIST, and USPTO
personnel may reserve time to ask questions of particular speakers
after the delivery of a speaker's remarks. Outcomes of the listening
session may include a follow-on request for comments or a further
focused workshop.
The roundtable will be physically accessible to people with
disabilities. Individuals requiring accommodation, such as sign
language interpretation or
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other ancillary aids, should communicate their needs at least seven
business days prior to the roundtable to Ms. Lakeshia Harley in the
USPTO's Office of Policy and International Affairs at 571-272-9300, at
[email protected], or by postal mail addressed to: Mail Stop
OPIA, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450,
Alexandria, VA 22314-1450, ATTN: Lakeshia Harley. Attendees joining in
person should arrive at least a half hour prior to the start of the
roundtable and must present a valid government-issued photo
identification upon arrival.
Request for Comments
You may submit written comments as follows. For reasons of
government efficiency, comments must be submitted through the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov. To submit comments via the
portal, enter docket number PTO-C-2023-0034 on the homepage and select
``search.'' The site will provide a search results page listing all
documents associated with this docket. Find a reference to this request
for comments and select on the ``comment'' icon, complete the required
fields, and enter or attach your comments. Attachments to electronic
comments will be accepted in Adobe[supreg] portable document format
(PDF) or Microsoft Word[supreg] format. Information that the submitter
does not desire to make public, such as an address or phone number,
should not be included in the comments because comments will be made
available for public inspection. Visit the Federal eRulemaking Portal
for additional instructions on providing comments via the portal. If
electronic submission of comments is not feasible due to a lack of
access to a computer and/or the internet, please contact the USPTO
using the contact information below for special instructions regarding
how to submit comments by mail or by hand delivery.
Comments containing references, studies, research, and other
empirical data that are not widely published should include copies of
the referenced materials. All submissions, including attachments and
other supporting materials, will become part of the public record and
subject to public disclosure. The Agencies will not accept comments
accompanied by a request that part or all of the material be treated
confidentially because of its business proprietary nature. Therefore,
do not submit confidential business information or otherwise sensitive,
protected information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Chris Hannon, at 571-272-7385 or
Mr. Anthony Quinn, at 202-893-6488. Inquiries can also be sent to
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On May 4, 2023, the White House released the United States
Government National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging
Technology (``the Strategy''). The Strategy calls for a whole of
government approach to reinvigorate our rules-based and private sector-
led approach to standards development. The Strategy seeks to prioritize
efforts for standards development that are essential for U.S.
competitiveness and national security including communication and
networking technologies, semiconductors and microelectronics,
artificial intelligence and machine learning, biotechnologies, clean
energy, and quantum information technologies, to name a few. The
Strategy highlights the importance of widely adopted standards as they
facilitate access and growth in new markets and support new market
entrants.
As a means to achieve increased U.S. private and public engagement
with standard development organizations, the Strategy identifies the
following four objectives: (1) investment, (2) participation, (3)
workforce, and (4) integrity and inclusivity. Each objective is
accompanied by particular lines of effort, such as helping to remove
and prevent barriers to private sector participation in standard
development, improving communications between public and private
sectors on standards, and educating and empowering the new standards
workforce.
Pursuant to a Request for Information on Implementation of the
United States Government National Standards Strategy for Critical and
Emerging Technology, Docket No. NIST-2023-0005 (https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2023-19245), the Agencies are seeking
feedback on issues that stakeholders face at the intersection of
standards and intellectual property, especially small and medium
enterprises (SMEs). SMEs are encouraged to self-identify in their
comment submissions. The listening session and stakeholder feedback
received will be used to narrow the scope of future collaborative
efforts between the Agencies and with stakeholders.
II. Focused Listening Session
The purpose of this listening session and request for comments is
to obtain public input on areas for ITA-NIST-USPTO collaboration and
engagement related to the Strategy. We are seeking feedback from a
broad group of stakeholders, including, but not limited to, private
sector companies, standards bodies and entities that participate in
them, licensors and licensees of standardized technologies, academia
and the general public. To facilitate stakeholder feedback, questions
are provided below. These questions are not meant to be exhaustive, and
stakeholders are encouraged to address these and/or other related
issues and to submit research and data that inform their comments on
these topics. Responses to these questions may result in the need for
additional workshops, hack-a-thons, or events to solve the identified
challenges.
III. Questions for Public Comment
Respondents may address any, all, or none of the following
questions and may address additional related topics that implicate the
intersection of standards and intellectual property rights. Please
identify, where possible, the questions your comments are intended to
address. ITA, NIST, and the USPTO invite written responses from the
public to the following questions:
1. Do the intellectual property rights policies of foreign
jurisdictions threaten any of U.S. leadership in international standard
setting, U.S. participation in international standard setting, and/or
the growth of U.S. SMEs that rely on the ability to readily license
standard essential patents?
2. If responding affirmatively to question 1, what can the
Department of Commerce do to mitigate the effects of any adverse
foreign policies relating to intellectual property rights and
standards? Please clearly identify any such adverse foreign policies
with specificity.
3. What more can other entities do, such as standards development
organizations, industry or consumer associations, academia, or U.S.
businesses to help improve American leadership, participation in
international standard setting, and/or increased participation of small
to medium-sized enterprises that rely on the ability to readily license
standard essential patents?
4. Are current fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND)
licensing practices adequate to sustain U.S. innovation and global
competitiveness? Are there other international models which would
better serve U.S. innovation in the future?
5. Are there specific U.S. intellectual property laws or policies
that inhibit participation in standards development?
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6. Are there specific U.S. intellectual property laws or policies
that inhibit growth of SMEs that rely on licensing and implementing
standards?
7. Which, if any, actions would be advisable for the Department of
Commerce to further explore regarding the interplay of intellectual
property and standards, including but not limited to:
a. educational guidance to SMEs to become more involved in
standards;
b. recommendations for standards development organizations
regarding intellectual property policies and enforcement thereof;
c. a database of judicially determined or otherwise voluntarily-
made-public licensing rates for technologies covered by a FRAND
commitment; and
d. other voluntary and/or public disclosures?
8. How can the Department of Commerce reinforce the importance of
IP-based incentives for participation in international technology
standards development, especially around critical and emerging
technologies?
9. What can the Department of Commerce do to mitigate emergence or
facilitate the resolution of FRAND licensing disputes? Can requiring
further transparency concerning patent ownership make standard
essential patent (SEP) licensing more efficient? What are other
impediments to reaching a FRAND license that the Department of Commerce
could address through policy or regulation?
10. Are there steps that the Department of Commerce can take
regarding intellectual property rights policy that will help advance
U.S. leadership in standards development and implementation for
critical and emerging technologies?
11. Do policy solutions that would require SEP holders to agree
collectively on rates or have parties rely on joint negotiation to
reach FRAND license agreements with SEP holders create legal risks? Are
there other concerns with these solutions?
12. What can the Department of Commerce do to help facilitate the
efficient resolution of FRAND disputes? What can the Department of
Commerce do with the World Intellectual Property Organization and/or
standard setting bodies to promote alternative dispute resolution to
more efficiently resolve FRAND disputes?
Katherine K. Vidal,
Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of
the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. 2023-19667 Filed 9-8-23; 8:45 am]
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