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Via Licensing Announces Patent Licensing Terms for Interactive Television
Services Broadcast Free-to-Air Using the DVB-MHP Standard
SAN FRANCISCO, Mar 02, 2006 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Via Licensing Corporation is pleased to announce licensing terms for patents essential to the Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) Multimedia Home Platform 1.0 standard (MHP 1.0) including terms for MHP services provided by non-subscription-based broadcasters (free-to-air broadcasters).
Holders of patents essential to the MHP standard that are participating in the formation of the joint-licensing program for MHP include Comcast, Open TV, Panasonic (Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.), Royal Philips Electronics, Samsung Electronics, Thomson, and Time Warner Cable. Via Licensing is acting as the licensing administrator for the pool.
As the purpose of the pool is to promote wide adoption of MHP by the market, license fees for MHP services broadcasted free-to-air will not be charged by the MHP patent pool before January 1, 2009. At the end of this incentive period, the license fees outlined below for MHP services provided by free-to-air broadcasters will be assessed on a per-broadcaster basis, and will vary depending on the total number of households within the reach of the MHP services. This fee structure simplifies reporting activities for licensees while distinguishing between those free-to-air broadcasters that offer for-fee services and those that do not.


Licensing fees for MHP are:Fee Type License FeeConsumer devices $2.00 per deviceMHP services provided by $0.25 per subscriber (household)subscription-based service per yearprovider Option: One-time five-year license for $1.25MHP services provided by Total number of Licensing feefree-to-air broadcasters that households per broadcasterdo not offer any for-fee within reach of (originator ofservices MHP services MHP service) per (million) year 0 to 0.1 FREE 0.1 to 2.5 $25,000 2.5 to 5 $50,000 5 to 7.5 $75,000 Above 7.5 $100,000MHP services provided by Total number of Licensing feefree-to-air broadcasters that households per broadcasteralso offer for-fee services within reach of (originator of(including but not limited to MHP services MHP service) perpay-per-view services) (million) year 0 to 0.1 FREE 0.1 to 2.5 $50,000 2.5 to 5 $100,000 5 to 7.5 $150,000 Above 7.5 $200,000
These fees are also available at www.vialicensing.com/products/MHP/MHP_license_terms.html.
MHP essential patent holders participating in the joint-licensing program and Via Licensing are continuing work on the development of agreements with a view towards offering MHP licenses by the end of summer 2006.
Via Licensing continues to welcome the addition of third parties that hold patents essential to the practice of MHP 1.0. The marketplace benefits from the participation of as many patent owners as possible, through the inclusion of more intellectual property in the license and by the contribution of more parties in development of the terms of the licensing program. Parties holding patents they believe are necessary for the practice of the MHP 1.0 standard, and who are interested in participating in the development of the licensing program, may request information by sending an email to [e-mail].
About Via Licensing Corporation
Via Licensing Corporation develops and administers patent licensing programs, frequently referred to as patent pools, on behalf of innovative technology companies and for the convenience of licensees. Licensing programs developed by Via Licensing are generally based on mandated or de facto technology standards. Current licensing programs offered by Via Licensing include Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11(TM), MPEG-2 AAC, MPEG-4 Audio, DRM (Digital Radio Mondiale), TV-Anytime, and H.264/AVC. Licensing programs in development by Via Licensing include NFC (Near Field Communications), IEEE 802.16(TM), DVB-MHP, and OCAP(TM) (OpenCable(TM) Applications Platform). Via Licensing Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dolby Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:DLB). For more information about Via Licensing Corporation, please visit www.vialicensing.com.
Certain statements in this press release, including statements relating to the expected availability of a joint patent license for technologies essential to the MHP standard, the benefits of joint licensing programs, the greater adoption of standards through joint licensing programs, and the benefit and capabilities of MHP capable devices and services are "forward-looking statements" that are subject to risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations, and as a result of certain risks and uncertainties actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. The following important factors, without limitation, could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements: risks associated with licensing technologies through patent pools; risks associated with licensing industry standards technologies; risks associated with developing proprietary technology in markets in which "open standards" are adopted; market acceptance of MHP capable devices and services; rapid changes in television technologies; risks associated with the development of markets for interactive television; and other risks detailed in Dolby Laboratories, Inc.'s Securities and Exchange Commission filings and reports, including its quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC for the quarter ended December 30, 2005. Dolby disclaims any obligation to update information contained in these forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
IEEE 802.11 and IEEE Std 802.16 are trademarks of the IEEE. OCAP and OpenCable are trademarks of CableLabs. S06/17122
SOURCE: Via Licensing Corporation


CONTACT: Via Licensing Corporation
Jeanne Alford, 415-645-5245
[e-mail]
Copyright Business Wire 2006
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KEYWORD: United States North America CaliforniaINDUSTRY KEYWORD: Entertainment Licensing (Entertainment) TV and Radio Technology Hardware Software TelecommunicationsSUBJECT CODE: Product/Service