Welcome to the latest edition of the Sisvel Insights weekly round-up, aggregating news stories, analyses and data points affecting the SEP world that have caught our eye over the past seven days.

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The Sisvel Wi-Fi Multimode pool has achieved serious momentum since it was announced at the start of this year. Last week, Hewlett Packard Enterprise became the programme’s latest licensee, joining Sony, Huawei, Panasonic, Philips and ZTE Corporation. The latter four are also licensors, along with KPN, Mitsubishi Electric, Orange, Aegis 11 SA (a Sisvel affiliate), SK Telecom and WILUS, Inc.

Importantly – like all the others agreed thus far for the new pool, which covers both Wi-Fi 6 and 7 – the HPE deal was an amicable one. That is notable, especially as HPE is such a big player in the WLAN market and a leading manufacturer of both consumer and enterprise routers. All in all, then, a significant validation of the Wi-Fi Multimode pool’s offer. No wonder Sisvel CIPO Heath Hoglund says he is “confident that we will be welcoming further licensees in the near future”.

Elsewhere, Samsung Electronics ended a dispute with Longhorn IP subsidiary Hannibal IP by signing a licensing deal giving it access to a portfolio of 5G SEPs; and in China, news emerged that officials are considering developing rules covering the administrative resolution of SEP disputes. Meanwhile, former USPTO Director David Kappos co-authored a piece, alongside Cravath associate Noa Ma, arguing that courts should look to set global FRAND rates only where the SEP owner has consented.

Please note that the inclusion of a piece in the list below does not signify agreement with what is stated in the linked article – just that we believe it is of interest and worth flagging.

Market

HPE has become the latest licensee of Sisvel's Wi-Fi Multimode programme after an amicable negotiation. Read more (Sisvel newsroom). See also IAM 🔒 and ip fray

BlackBerry has joined founding licensors Huawei, LG Electronics and Nokia as the newest patent owner in the Sisvel POS patent pool. Read more (Sisvel LinkedIn)

Samsung has agreed a licensing deal with Longhorn IP that ends litigation with the NPE’s subsidiary Hannibal IP and gives the South Korean company access to SEPs reading on 5G technology. Read more (Longhorn IP press release)

Avanci has announced Sharp as a new licensor under its Wi-Fi 6 Vehicle programme. Read more (Avanci LinkedIn)

South Korean research lab ETRI has announced licensing revenue of approximately $34 million for 2025 – its highest annual figure to date. Read more (ip fray)

Legal

Verizon and Samsung have been targeted with 5G cellular patents in a US litigation campaign initiated by Dominion Harbor Group. Read more (IAM)🔒

Optis has requested a fourth trial against Apple in a long-running dispute over 4G cellular patents. Read more (Law360) 🔒

Policy & Opinion

Regulators in China are considering the introduction of rules for the administrative resolution of SEP licensing disputes. Read more (MLex) 🔒

The US Department of Justice Antitrust Division has filed another brief espousing positions that are favourable to a SEP holder which is litigating against Samsung. Read more (IAM) 🔒. See also ip fray 🔒

In the absence of consent from the SEP holder, global FRAND rate-setting by courts lacks enforceability, risks conflicting rulings and undermines property rights. Read more (IAM) 🔒

Lobbyists are seeking to insert SEP-related provisions into the Trump administration’s National Strategic Plan for Advanced Manufacturing. Read more (MLex) 🔒

The globally fractured SEP enforcement environment increases uncertainty and legal costs. Read more (MLex) 🔒

Strategy & Analysis

An upcoming event to mark the opening of Sisvel’s Shenzhen office will bring together corporate IP leaders and policy experts for a half-day discussion of China’s IP transformation. Read more (Sisvel Insights)

Sisvel CEO Mattia Fogliacco has discussed the firm’s expansion into China in an exclusive interview with MLex. Read more (MLex)

USPTO statistics reveal that the PTAB institution rate declined to 37% in February, while pendency has been reduced from 28 months to just nine months over the past year. Read more (IP Watchdog)