IPR Owners for CableLabs® OCAP™
and DVB MHP to Meet in Geneva

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Seven companies have forwarded patents related to the OpenCable™ Application Platform (OCAP™) specification, and the Digital Video Broadcast (DVB) Multimedia Home Platform (MHP) and GEM (Globally Executable MHP) specifications. OCAP is based on the GEM specification. The companies have responded to a call made last May by CableLabs® and the DVB Project for intellectual property rights (IPR) related to the specifications.

The law firm Sughrue Mion will complete its initial evaluation of the patents shortly and will notify IPR owners of its determinations. (More rights holders have indicated their intention to submit additional IPRs in the coming days.) In preparation for the formation of a patent pool, the DVB will make a conference room available at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Geneva on October 28th for the IPR owners to meet. The annual DVB General Assembly is scheduled for that week as well in Geneva.

Dr. Richard R. Green, President and CEO of CableLabs, said: “We encourage the IPR owners to move forward quickly to offer a license that is fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory. As with the licensing efforts fostered by CableLabs for MPEG-2, an efficient patent pool and reasonable license terms will serve to benefit vendors, patent holders, and consumers alike. The availability of a license also will accelerate the introduction of OCAP interactive cable products and services into the marketplace, further stimulating the digital transition.”

Additional information on the OpenCable project, including a copy of the OCAP Specification, may be found at www.opencable.com. Potential IPR owners should contact the Patent Coordinator, Sughrue Mion, directly (Alan Kasper, akasper@sughrue.com, or Chris Lipp, clipp@sughrue.com, or 202.293.7060). The form on which IPR declarations are to be made is available at Sughrue Mion, www.mhp.org, or www.opencable.com/downloads/OpenCable_IPR_Declarant_Statement.pdf.

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