Avanci

Avanci was founded in 2016 by Kasim Alfalahi, the former Chief Intellectual Property Officer at Ericsson.{{Cite web|last=Bultman|first=Matthew|date=July 5, 2022|access-date=August 22, 2022|title=Avanci Is Turning Automakers' Patent Licensing on Its Head |url=https://news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/avanci-is-turning-automakers-patent-licensing-on-its-head |website=Bloomberg Law}} Ericsson was one of the first patent holders to join the Avanci Vehicle marketplace, along with InterDigital, KPN, Qualcomm and ZTE. Later in 2016, Sony joined as well.

In 2017, BMW became the first automaker to sign a license agreement with Avanci, followed by Volvo, Audi, Porsche and Volkswagen. By 2018, twenty patent holders had agreed to license their patents through the platform, including Conversant, NTT Docomo and Nokia.[https://www.iam-media.com/article/nokia-announces-it-joining-avanci "Nokia announces it is joining Avanci"], [https://www.iam-media.com IAM], 24 October 2018. In 2021, Daimler AG and Jaguar Land Rover joined the platform as licensees.[https://www.law360.com/articles/1451203/daimler-reaches-licensing-deal-with-avanci-over-4g-tech "Daimler Reaches Licensing Deal With Avanci Over 4G Tech"], [https://www.law360.com Law360], 22 December 2021. In 2022, General Motors and Ford entered licensing deals with Avanci while LG Electronics and Pantech joined the platform as licensors.{{Cite web|last=Wild|first=Joff|title=Ford takes Avanci license in wake of German injunction|url=https://www.iam-media.com/article/ford-avanci-licence-germany-injunction|access-date=2022-08-26|website=IAM|language=en}} In September 2022, Honda, Nissan and Toyota signed licensing deals with Avanci, marking the first Japanese automakers to sign with the company.{{Cite web|date=September 21, 2022|access-date=October 12, 2022|title=Toyota, Honda to pay connected-car patent fees to telecoms |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Automobiles/Toyota-Honda-to-pay-connected-car-patent-fees-to-telecoms |website=Nikkei Asia}}

In July 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division reviewed the proposed platform and concluded that the platform was unlikely to harm competition due to its fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory (FRAND) rates and safeguards in place to protect competition.[https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-issues-business-review-letter-avanci-proposed-licensing-platform-advance "Justice Department Issues Business Review Letter To Avanci For Proposed Licensing Platform To Advance 5G Technology For Interconnected Automobiles"], United States Department of Justice, 28 July 2020.

In August 2022, Avanci hired Marianne Frydenlund from Nordic Semiconductor to lead the creation of new licensing programs for other IoT sectors.{{cite web|url=https://www.iam-media.com/article/avanci-hire-new-sectors-iot |title=Major Avanci hire signals serious push into new licensing areas |first=Joff |last=Wild |work=IAM|date=1 August 2022 |access-date=21 October 2022}} Hyundai and Kia also signed licensing deals later that month.{{cite web|url=https://www.iam-media.com/article/hyundai-and-kia-take-avanci-licences-ahead-of-september-price-hike |title=Hyundai and Kia take Avanci licences ahead of September price hike |first=Adam |last=Houldsworth |work=IAM|date=25 August 2022 |access-date=21 October 2022}}

In a 2023 article published in the Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice, authors Dr. Manveen Singh and Dr. Vishwas H. Devaiah note that standard essential patent licensing in the automotive sector has progressed in large part due to widespread industry participation in the Avanci platform as a one-stop shop for such licenses. The authors also point out that Avanci's model has found favor with courts and regulatory bodies in the U.S. and Europe.{{cite journal |last1=Singh |first1=Manveen |last2=Devaiah |first2=Vishwas |date=31 January 2023 |title=SEP licensing in the automotive sector: shifting gears too quickly? |url=https://doi.org/10.1093/jiplp/jpad003 |journal=Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice |volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=122–134 |doi=10.1093/jiplp/jpad003 |access-date=21 February 2023|url-access=subscription }}

In February 2023, Avanci began offering cellular patent licensing for connected products installed in vehicles after their original sale via the Avanci Aftermarket program. The platform launched with over 40 patent holders, including Ericsson, InterDigital, and Qualcomm, licensing technologies for use in products such as entertainment units, tracking devices in containers, information systems for public transport, and connected devices in road toll stations.{{Cite web|last=Houldsworth|first=Adam|date=February 21, 2023|access-date=March 24, 2023|title=

Avanci launches Aftermarket programme as part of push into new areas |url=https://www.iam-media.com/article/avanci-launches-new-aftermarket-programme-part-of-push-new-areas|website=Intellectual Asset Management}}

In March 2023, Avanci launched Avanci Broadcast, a patent licensing platform for the ATSC 3.0 broadcast standard, which was developed by the Advanced Television Systems Committee and has been adopted for over-the-air TV broadcasts in the United States, Canada, Mexico, South Korea and Jamaica, among other countries. Avanci Broadcast launched with more than 70% of all ATSC 3.0 declared patent families on the platform from patent holders ETRI, LG Electronics, ONE Media, Panasonic, Samsung Electronics, Sharp and Sun Patent Trust, and includes device manufacturers that have shipped the vast majority of televisions using the ATSC 3.0 standard. In August 2023, Avanci Broadcast signed its first licensees, Atlanta DTH and ZapperBox.{{cite web|url=https://www.iam-media.com/article/avanci-signs-first-new-broadcast-licensees |title=Avanci signs up first new Broadcast licensees |first=Adam |last=Houldsworth |work=IAM|date=23 August 2023|access-date=17 October 2023}}

In April 2023, Samsung joined the Avanci Vehicle 4G licensing program, the company’s first inclusion in a collective licensing platform.{{cite web|url=https://www.juve-patent.com/people-and-business/samsung-electronics-joins-avanci-4g-vehicle-licensing-programme/|title=Samsung Electronics joins Avanci 4G vehicle licensing programme |first=Amy |last=Sandys |work=Juve Patent|date=19 April 2023 |access-date=29 October 2023}} In June 2023, Avanci won "Global Patent License Provider of the Year" at the 18th annual Managing IP Awards.{{cite web|url=https://www.managingip.com/article/2btqlqfqsokjjxd3rqqkg/awards/managing-ip-emea-awards-2023-the-winners |title=Managing IP EMEA Awards 2023: the winners |first=namefirst |last= namelast |work=ManagingIP|date=22 June 2023 |access-date=17 July 2023}}

In September 2023, Avanci launched its 5G program for connected vehicles, which through a single license provides access to patented technologies essential for 5G, 4G, 3G, and 2G connectivity. The patented technologies include those necessary for vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) connectivity, which enables vehicles to communicate with other smart-enabled vehicles and transportation infrastructure, as well as cyclists and pedestrians. The program launched with 58 licensors. Mercedes-Benz was the first licensee, followed shortly by BMW. Additionally, it was announced in September 2023 that Huawei had joined the Avanci 4G and 5G Vehicle programs.{{Cite web|last=Sholli|first=Sam|date=August 17, 2023|access-date=October 11, 2023|title=Avanci chief: Huawei joining 5G platform was a 'when, not if'|url=https://www.managingip.com/article/2c2is95b53rsmro365p1c/avanci-chief-huawei-joining-5g-platform-was-a-when-not-if |website=Managing Intellectual Property}}

Kasim Alfalahi is the founder and CEO of Avanci. Prior to Avanci, Alfalahi was Ericsson’s Chief Intellectual Property Officer, where in 2015 patent licensing generated $1.7 billion in revenue.{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ericsson-apple/ericsson-signs-patent-deal-with-apple-shares-soar-idUSKBN0U40MT20151221 |title=Ericsson signs patent deal with Apple, shares soar |first1=Sven |last1= Nordenstam | first2=Olof |last2=Swahnberg |work=Reuters|date=20 December 2015|access-date=27 October 2023}} After more than 20 years with Ericsson, he left the company to address concerns about unpredictability and uncertainty in licensing fees through the founding of Avanci. In 2022, Alfalahi was named one of the "50 most influential people in IP" by intellectual property publication Managing IP due to Avanci's growth in the automotive patent licensing space.{{cite web|url=https://www.managingip.com/article/2amiiwcq23uk14mfb2y2o/50-most-influential-people-in-ip-2022-mip-recognises-kasim-alfalahi-at-avanci |title=50 most influential people in IP 2022: MIP recognises Kasim Alfalahi at Avanci |work=Managing IP|date=6 December 2022 |access-date=15 December 2022}} In March 2023, Intellectual Asset Management ranked CEO Kasim Alfalahi number one on its Market Makers 2022 list, which recognizes influential leaders in the patent licensing space, due to the significant number of automakers that joined Avanci Vehicle in 2022.{{cite web|url=https://www.iam-media.com/article/market-makers-2022-part-two |title=The Market Makers of 2022: top 20 revealed |work=Intellectual Asset Management|date=15 March 2023 |access-date=6 April 2023}} Alfalahi is also a Board Member of St. Mark's School of Texas and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.{{cite web|url=https://www.smtexas.org/about-us/board-of-trustees |title=Board of Trustees|work=St. Mark's School of Texas |access-date=October 31, 2023}}{{cite web|url=https://www.utsouthwestern.edu/about-us/office-of-the-president/advisory-board.html |title=President's Advisory Board|work=UT Southwestern Medical Center|access-date=October 31, 2023}}

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• {{official website|https://www.avanci.com/}}

Category:American companies established in 2016

Category:Licensing

Category:Patent law organizations

Category:Patent pools

Category:Strategic alliances

Category:Companies based in Dallas