Intermec Technologies Corp. is putting its intellectual property licensing program on hold for 60 days so that the EPCglobal Generation 2 radio frequency identification (RFID) specification can be validated.
Intermec announced its intellectual property RAND (reasonable and non-discriminatory) program earlier this year. Intermec has long held that parts of the Electronic Product Code (EPC) standard rely on Intermec patents. EPCglobal is still reviewing the patents to determine if the standard is dependent on those patents.
EPCglobal subscribers sign an IP policy agreement stating that they will contribute relevant intellectual property on either a royalty-free or RAND basis. Intermec provided five patents on a royalty-free basis, but plans to collect royalties on nine existing and five pending patents.
There has been ongoing wrangling over patents in the RFID market ever since the EPC standard was first proposed. Established companies like Intermec -- which have invested millions of dollars in RFID development -- have been reluctant to hand over their IP to newer vendors, which have built their businesses around the EPC model. Earlier this year, Intermec filed a patent infringement suit against one of these manufacturers, Matrics (now part of Symbol Technologies).
By suspending the licensing program, Intermec has cleared the way for other manufacturers to submit UHF Generation 2 prototype chips, tags and readers for testing by EPCglobal without violating its patents.
"This spirit of collaboration is exactly what the EPCglobal community and marketplace needs," said Dick Cantwell, chairman of the EPCglobal board of governors. "The industry is eager for the release of a common specification that will drive this emerging market forward. Today's announcement confirms that the process is continuing, the issues are being addressed, and progress is being made."
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