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Posted by: dboone Ron, I don't think the construction of the paragraph is in doubt. I think it clear that 2 and 2.5 are paid up, and 3 g has the threshold.
He is also all about customer solutions, as oppposed to the patent troll concept. As a litigator, I concur. Having customers pay for something they recognize of value is much more efficient than beating them in the courtroom. I think he is the right leader for us. D
Posted by: rmarchma Dboone re the LG license, paid-up and threshold provisions
...."In the first quarter 2006, we entered into a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-bearing, convenience-based patent license with LG Electronics, Inc.(LG) covering the sale of (i) terminal units compliant with 2G and 2.5G TDMA-based and 3G standards, and (ii) infrastructure compliant with CDMA2000 technology and its extensions up to a limited threshold amount....The agreement expires at the end of 2010 upon which LG will receive a paid-up license to sell single-mode GSM/GPRS/EDGE terminal units under the patents included under the license." Also notice from the above wording how the "limited threshold amount" appears to be modifying only the (ii) part of the statement and not both parts. If the limited threshold amount were modifying both parts (i) and (ii), then it would seem that there should be a comma after the phrase "CDMA2000 technology". However it appears from what you and others are saying is that Janet is clarifying that the "threshold amount" applies to both terminal units and to CDMA2000 infrastructure. Thanks for the additional elaboration re Campagna's comments compared to Merritt's comments at the ASM.
Posted by: dboone Fla,
WM has made many comments that lead me to believe the patent license business is one of momentum. The more licenses we have, the easier it is to license others. Hope that helps. D
Posted by: bulldzr Even Gercenstein publicly said years ago that the strenth and majority of IDCC's patents and contributions for advanced wireless (3G?) were in the hanset/terminal unit. Why, I don't know. Later and Best, bulldzr
Posted by: lastchoice
there is "some upside possibility," but the bar is very high, any upside will be small. all imo and best recollection. Billion--with a 'B'
Posted by: rmarchma Dboone appreciate your ASM comments, and that you are a fellow Georgian. One question re LG and the threshold you said: ..."I asked JP about the continuing question some have regarding LG. As I understand it, LG is paid on 3g to a threshold level. Below the level, we get the disclosed amount no matter what. Above the threshold, we will receive additional revenue."
You also made the following comment: ..."HC is HC, what more can you say. My impression is that HC is all about HC and WM is all about IDCC and his team. Thank goodness for WM." Could you further elaborate on why you had the impression that Harry is all about himself, whereas Merritt is all about IDCC and his team?
Posted by: dboone Greetings to all: I am just back to ATL from KOP and yesterday's ASM. I continue to be impressed with our investment. I know many have posted regarding the meeting, here are my observations. 1. The meeting seemed more reserved than last year. I think there are two reasons. One, the animus with the shareholders (including myself) was not present. I think the objective, positive accomplishments of the past year made us all feel better. The change in management was a welcome change which has served us well in the first year. Secondly, from public and private discussions, I sense that management is holding their cards close to the vest. It is my impression that last year they were open in discussing where they wanted to go. This year, I think they are in the middle of discussions with a number of our potential customers and they are therefor properly concerned with disclosures. Last year, nothing concrete to worry about. This year??? I think they must be progressing nicely or they wouldn't worry.
3. Per unit royalties for 3g should reasonably be north of 1%. There was some confusion after the meeting about what was said. I heard two distinct comments: we are receiving more than $1.50 per unit on 3g, which is in the 1% license fee area; Our 3g contributions are of greater value, indicating that we should reasonably receive 1.5 to 2% royalty on 3g products. Is that what the other attendees heard? Present 3g units average $200. They will naturally come down in price. 4. Our 2010 revenue projections are reasonably in the 800-850 million area. It could be higher. From the discussions, I don't think management would make these statements/projections if they didn't think they could solidly deliver.
7. NOK: the resolution of the 3g up to the payment date is a good thing. 1st, the 3g numbers are small. 2nd, no license agreement means no arbitration and the milk toast result. With no license agreement, and infringer is liable for much greater damage.
10. Employee Stock Options: The overhang of employee stock options has a defined end. The options are no longer used and their value spans into the 30's. Perhaps 7 million in the money, but any dilution is more than offset by our 300 million buy-back. 11. On the issue of the buy-back. During the meeting RF was asked where we stood. He reiterated the 20 million comment from the last conference call. RF says they won't tell us where they are until earnings anouncement durning the next conference call. My thought is this makes sense, especially if they are taking advantage of dips and if they are concerned about deals in the works. I thought it was a solid, no surprises meeting. Quieter than the last. More stayed. I think this is an indication of the confidence they have in our future. I hope this was helpful and not too repetative of others. Best to all, D
Posted by: mschere Good question..Since Ericsson has the largest Global Share of 3G Infrastructure , perhaps some who follow Qualcomm can furnish some input as to Ericsson's royalty rate to Qualcomm for its Infrastructure sales?
RE: If IDCC's revenue will be 800 million in 2010 after getting paid for all 3G terminal units, then wouldn't it be around 1.5 billion if they could also get paid for all 3G base stations? But apparently IDCC does not think they can license all the infrastructure manufacturers. Why is that? Ericsson 3G base station
Posted by: Data_Rox excellent - thanks for the report KAJ07710 - a buck and a half a phone for 3G is a great target. R
Posted by: sinnet14 I remember Data said about he would be happy to get .5% rate for 3G phones and he thinks that somebody claimed that IDCC to have 1% rate is too high. Phones you got free after rebates don't mean manufacturer sell them for free. You got incentives from operators for signing up the plan agreement. sinnet
Posted by: revlis Bob, Have to run. What I got from Samsung is that there could be a technology agreement along with a license agreement. BM said that Nokia liked to do everything in house but Samsung could be willing to work with IDCC on some R & D. revlis
Posted by: bulldzr Sonny, I think the "Gurus" are talking about an average... hoping for $1 per phone over time. Remember, so far (prior to LG) the only meaningful 3G revenues were coming from NEC, and maybe Sharp and a few others. These were relatively low volume, high priced handsets, hence a higher amount of royalty per phone. Some of the other 3G revs were derived from wireless cards. Also, even though we will record revenue from LG, it is a fixed amount. Currently LG's 3G unit volume is low, therefore the royalty per handset is high. As LG's volumes ramp up, our revenues per phone will decrease because the revenue is fixed. Later and Best, bulldzr
Posted by: TFWG My comments....Just got back from the ASM.... Nothing huge to report: 1) IDCC has seen design wins in products to be offered by Phillips and IFX. Mark would not commit to profit by Q4, but they do expect profit. 2) IDCC is currently receiving plus $1.50 for 3g per handset 3) No update on buyback until Q2 reporting 4) Nothing new on China 5) Nothing to be said about Sammy. 6) IDCC expects to have a fully functional 2g/3g modem available for sale...this year? 7) LTE participant Mr. Merritt $850M in revenue by 2010 is possible with 75% marketshare (speculation I'm sure, but nice for him to say it instead of me!) 9) Nice meeting over all, but mostly sizzle...no steak. Best, Bob
Posted by: TFWG Please remember, Mr. Merritt said it is over a $1.50 TODAY. IMO, as IDCC licenses a few more big dogs, the mix will change and the mean ASP will be reduced. BB
Sierra Wireless expands HSDPA AirCard(R) PC Card line The AirCard 875 is the company's 15th product in the AirCard family and offers true high-speed roaming on 3G networks worldwide
"The AirCard 875 is the latest in a long line of high-quality AirCard PC Card products, built on Sierra Wireless's 13 years of wireless product development experience," said Trent Punnett...
For more information about the Sierra Wireless AirCard 875 please visit
WL note: HTC, an InterDigital licensee, manufacturers phones under other company labels, like i-mate. I-mate promises Smartflip, Windows Mobile-based Razr competitor
Now the company has offered a more concrete glimpse of the handset in its most recent newsletter with a blurb that proclaims the handset is coming soon. The phone, which has been compared with Motorola Inc.’s popular Razr handset, is a quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE phone that includes support for Windows Mobile 5.0, a camera, and Bluetooth capabilities. The phone reportedly is 0.6 inches thick, on par with the Razr, and weighs 3.4 ounces. The company did not officially release pricing information, but the phone is being offered for pre-order at a handful of reseller Web sites for $700.
mschere
Posted by: mschere
2006-05-14 About Pantech: mschere
Posted by: MMC89 FOCUS: Gartner Upgrades 06 Mobile Phone Forecast To 960 Million Units 7:16 PM EDT May 30, 2006 By Magnus Hansson STOCKHOLM -(Dow Jones)- Strong first-quarter sales of mobile phones, primarily in emerging markets, led Gartner to raise its projection for the industry's full-year 2006 growth to 18%, and the research firm now predicts that 960 million units will be sold.
(In thousands of units) Company 1Q 2006 1Q 2006 1Q 2005 1Q 2005 Company Web site: http://www.gartner.com (END) Dow Jones Newswires
Ed note- IDCC licensees Sanyo, HTC, and Arima manufacture phones sold under other names, with royalties to IDCC From the conference call dated 4/28 re: Nokia settlement You know, at this point at a high level we cover about 35% to 40% of the 3G market and that’s including both WCDMA and CMDA2000. My comment: Summary of top 6 handset manufacturers:
Motorola: IDCC receives partial 3G royalties through HTC Samsung: In arbitration LG: licensed Ericy: IDCC receives partial 3G royalties through Arima BenQ: status unknown. ( Speculation is that there is a BenQ/Infineon/IDCC connection ) mo
NEC has been at the cutting edge of research and development its field for over a For additional information, please visit the NEC home page at: http://www.nec.com/
For more information, please visit: http://panasonic.co.jp/pmc/company/en/index.html
For additional information, please visit: http://www.huawei.com/ COSMOBIC Technology Co.,LTD             URL:http://www.cosmobic.com
OLD PANASONIC 2G NEWS..RIP! Panasonic to kill GSM phones for 3G Linux handsets December 09, 2005 (IDG News Service) -- Panasonic Mobile Communications Co. is ending development of second-generation (2G) cell phones in the face of "severe global competition" to concentrate on development of third-generation (3G) Linux-based handsets, it said Friday.
The company, which is a unit of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., will now put its efforts into Linux-based 3G handsets. It's already selling such phones in Japan and hopes to reduce costs by using a common platform for its phones worldwide. As a result of the decision, the company will close its research and development operations at Panasonic Mobile Communications Development Corporation of U.S.A., which has been working on non-Linux systems. The company's European research at Panasonic Mobile Communications Development of Europe Ltd. in the U.K. will turn its attention to 3G and other platforms, Panasonic said. Additionally, the company will close Panasonic Mobile Communications Corporation of the Philippines, where it makes many GSM handsets, and close GSM production at Panasonic Mobile & Automotive Systems Czech SRO. GSM handset production at Panasonic Putian Mobile Communications Beijing Co. in China will be shifted to 3G handsets.
Posted by: Bill Dalglish revlis: Informative Infineon link in your post Thanks! Infineon did a fine job in the February 2006 presentation you link us to. Great graphics (therefore may be a little slow loading in dial up connection. I'm glad IDCC's contributions to the stack part of the chip in partnership with Infineon may draw additional revenues beyond usual royalties. You posted: Old news Infineon 3G baseband processor..DESIGN WIN..PANASONIC/VODAFONE 2G DESIGN WIN..benQ http://www.infineon.com/upload/Document/press_releases/2005/Eul_Press_Briefing_10_02_06.pdf Posted by: rmarchma Sjratty re: Panasonic earned royalty Panasonic received a paid-up license for 2G. Therefore the updated license signed in 2001 involving the $19.5m advance only covers sales of 3G products. Although the Matsushita/Panasonic 3G license was signed in 2001, royalty did not begin accruing until January 1, 2003. Therefore the $12m earned royalty represents 3 years of Panasonic 3G royalty. Prorata that would be $1m of Panasonic 3G royalty per Quarter over the 2003-2005 time period. However I doubt that Panasonic's earned 3G royalty is an equal amount each quarter over the last three years. I would think that Panasonic sold significantly more 3G products in 2005 than they did in 2003.
Posted by: lastchoice InterDigital Issues Revenue Guidance for Second Quarter 2006; Solid Recurring Royalties and Recognition of Nokia Revenue Benefit Quarter KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa.--(Business Wire)--May 30, 2006--
-- $228 million associated with the resolution of a dispute with Nokia related to a prior patent license agreement, -- $50 million to $51 million of recurring patent license royalty revenue from its base of existing licensees, -- $12 million of patent license royalty revenue related to resolution of a licensing matter with Panasonic, and -- $1 million to $2 million of revenue related to technology solution agreements.
payment this year, recording $12.5 million per quarter in each of third and fourth quarter 2006. Panasonic Richard Fagan, InterDigital's Chief Financial Officer, noted, "We continue to benefit from solid contributions from our existing base of patent licensees and we remain optimistic about our prospects for growth as we continue to capitalize on opportunities in the growing 3G market. While the recognition of a large portion of the payment from Nokia in the second quarter will create an unusual quarter, the payment provides further validation as to our ability to generate value from our intellectual contributions to the wireless industry." About InterDigital
Posted by: MTJBKH NEC handset alliance... May 30, 2006 NEC Seeks to Cut Cellphone Costs With an Alliance By SAYAKA YAKUSHIJI
A tie-up would give a boost to NEC's ailing mobile-handset business, helping it break even by the latter half of this fiscal year, which ends March 31, NEC President Kaoru Yano said. NEC, once Japan's top manufacturer of cellphone handsets, saw its group net profit plunge 84% to 12.14 billion yen ($107.7 million) for the year ended March. In addition to foreign-exchange losses, weakness in its handset business weighed on its bottom line. It sold 10.9 million mobile-phone handsets last fiscal year, compared with 13.1 million in the year ended March 2005.
A tie-up among the three companies would mark the latest development in an industrywide consolidation of handset makers, as they step up efforts to shoulder heavy research and development costs for third-generation handsets. The 3G service, which enables users to send videos and download Internet content at high speed, is becoming popular in Japan.
Write to Sayaka Yakushiji at sayaka.yakushiji@dowjones.com1 URL for this article: Copyright 2006 Dow Jones & Company, Inc
Posted by: mschere
OLD IDCC News.. 22nd September 2003
"We congratulate Infineon and Huawei on their recent announcement," said Howard Goldberg, President and Chief Executive Officer. "We look forward to contributing to their success, as well as the overall success of 3G wireless in China. The use of our FDD protocol stack technology, jointly developed with Infineon, is evidence that we are delivering competitive solutions to the 3G wireless market."
OLD IDCC News.. 22nd September 2003 US : InterDigital Communications, a leading architect, designer and provider of wireless technology and product platforms, today announced that its Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) protocol stack technology, a component of InterDigital's complete WCDMA solution, will be utilized by Infineon Technologies AG (Infineon) in solutions to be provided to Huawei Technologies (Huawei) under their recently announced partnership. Inset is President and CEO Howard Goldberg who is quoted.
"We congratulate Infineon and Huawei on their recent announcement," said Howard Goldberg, President and Chief Executive Officer. "We look forward to contributing to their success, as well as the overall success of 3G wireless in China. The use of our FDD protocol stack technology, jointly developed with Infineon, is evidence that we are delivering competitive solutions to the 3G wireless market."
Posted by: mschere IMO:Huawei will be the 1st to market a WCDMA handset under $125, with IDCC Inventions inside! OLD NEWS. Infineon, Huawei aim for cheaper 3G phones
Most 3G phones sell at over 5,000 yuan (US$603), but the two firms expect to bring prices down to that of 2G phones, which average less than 2,000 yuan (US$240) in China, Xu Zhijun, president of Huawei's wireless product line business was quoted as saying in the report. I Both companies will invest about US$20 million investment into the project, and the first operational phone based on the joint platform is expected to be ready by the middle of next year, Xu said in the Xinhua report. Ulrich Schumacher, Infineon's CEO, said in the report that the obstacles 3G faced globally resulted from overemphasis on high-end multimedia and data applications market by telecom operators and equipment makers. This meant sales volume was small, and operators and equipment vendors would not profit much from the rollout of the systems, said the report. "The biggest question is how we can stimulate the 3G market and our co-operation with Huawei aims to find a right approach for that," said Ulrich Schumacher, president and chief executive officer of the German semiconductor firm in the report. "Some 90 percent of customers of WCDMA in China won't use multimedia capabilities. It is more important to provide low-cost handsets, which support just voice communications and short messaging services, than to push high-end handsets with full functionality in China at present," Xu was quoted as saying in a report on Nikkei News. At press time, Infineon in Singapore could not outline the features of the proposed 3G phone, except to say that it would emphasize voice over high-end multimedia and data applications. mschere
Posted by: Bill Dalglish Data: Very helpful! Especially liked "where our contribution..." The real news in the releases was that the Linux smartphone reference design can run the Linux code in the same ARM9 that is doing the call processing for GSM/GPRS/EDGE/UMTS (where our contribution to the stack is)...thus removing the need to have a distinct processor to run Linux in the device...which reduces the BOM (bill of materials). Real Time Linux (RTLinux from FSMLabs) handles interupts much easier than MS or Symbian does, and can play nicer in the "sandbox" so it doesn't cause the phone portion to crash as much. I also perked up reading your statement: Now...we have to see who adopts this reference design so we can get stack royalties (and IPR royalties too!) Thanks, Data Rox! Thanks, mschere, for bringing this potentially very good news about this very creative new Linux/Infineon chip (with InterDigital GSM/GPRS/EDGE/UMTS contributions) to our attention in your posts last night! Bill
Posted by: Data_Rox Bill The ARM9 has been the platform for Infineon for several years now - not based on IDCC.... http://www.infineon.com/cgi-bin/ifx/portal/ep/contentView.do?channelId=-73823&contentId=128117&a...
If you look at the recent releases from Q on their partnership with MS, you'll see that the MSM 7XXX target is using an ARM11 for MS, and ARM9 for modem processing...a "dual core" that can keep the 2 processes distinct (as we all know MS doesn't play nice) and provide real time operations to both. It will certainly cost more than a single ARM9 core.
http://www.arm.com/iqonline/news/marketnews/13416.html
Current mobile phones running operating systems such as Windows, Symbian or Linux utilise two processors to run the embedded software, an applications processor and a baseband processor which is normally used for communications functions Now...we have to see who adopts this reference design so we can get stack royalties (and IPR royalties too!) RTLinux powered 2.5G and 3G cell phones may be in production soon given market trends suggesting that fast real-time capability is one of the key barriers to a broad implementation of Linux in mobile devi
If so, that certainly seems like truly positive news for InterDigital. Would be a very positive outcome of the Infineon/Comneon partnership with InterDigital of 2 or 3 years ago to develop a chip like this, it seems. Thanks mschere, for the fascinating articles you've posted Sun night on this new ARM9 chip's availablity. Bill Posted by: mschere IMO:This should be royalty bearing to IDCC.. RTLinux-powered cellphones may be in production soon, says FSMLabs RTLinux-powered 2.5G and 3G cellphones may be in production soon given market trends suggesting that fast real-time capability is one of the key barriers to a broad implementation of Linux in mobile devices, said FSMLabs.
FSMLabs: we deliver products, not empty promises. http://www.fsmlabs.com/index.php mschere
Posted by: Data_Rox mschere - my questions still stand re: LTE....but I'll modify for you. Please don't take it as a slam to IDCC, but I was asking real questions of you do you really think IDCC is going to participate in LTE? answer - yes If so in what way? licensing, technology, ? Have you reviewed the proposed IPR licensing associated with LTE? http://www.3gpp.org/Highlights/LTE/LTE.htm and here from IDCC's 2005 10K Royalty Rates Could Decrease.
abridged post Posted by: MSC290 "Made in India" phones set to tap global markets Fri May 26, 2006 01:00 PM ET By Shailendra Bhatnagar NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India, already the world's fastest growing wireless services market, is set to become a handset manufacturing and export hub as giants such as Nokia and LG churn out millions of phones to tap voracious demand.
Balance of article: http://go.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=12351417
Posted by: mschere QUALCOMM HINTS AT NO ROYALTY CUT FOR WIRELESS TECHNOLOGIES
The head of Qualcomm Inc. on Thursday hinted that the U.S. wireless chip supplier will not lower royalties for the use of its patented technologies for wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA). WCDMA is an upgraded version of CDMA, which promises faster and better seamless data transfer at a high speed of network connectivity. Qualcomm owns most of the key patents for CDMA and WCDMA.
For each handset sold, local mobile phone manufacturers have to pay royalties of 5.25 per cent to 5.75 per cent, industry sources said. They have called for Qualcomm to lower the royalties as they move to adopt the WCDMA communications platform. According to a report compiled by the Ministry of Information and Communication, the handset makers paid royalties amounting to 3.31 trillion won (US$3.49 billion) from 1995 to 2005 to Qualcomm for using the patented CDMA technologies mschere
Nokia sees consolidation among mobile phone makers
"I continue to see consolidation happen," CEO-designate Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo told the Lehman Brothers Wireless and Wireline Conference in Phoenix, Arizona.
Posted by: lastchoice Verizon and Motorola Announce the Motorola Q (video: http://www.vzwshop.com/q/ ) Exclusive to Verizon Wireless, The QWERTY Smartphone Delivers E-mail, Entertainment and Seamless Mobility in One Ultra-Thin Package
Perfect for customers who multi-task and want flexibility in today's fast- paced business environment, the Moto Q's style and phone-first mantra builds upon the design revolution created by the Motorola RAZR(TM) -- the best-selling clamshell handset in the world. The Moto Q -- which runs Microsoft Windows Mobile(R) 5.0 software -- delivers an uncompromising mobile experience in an all-in-one handheld device that combines the reliability of a greatphone, personal productivity capabilities, powerful enterprise connectivity and entertainment in a thin and stylish form factor. wireless broadband network -- to send and receive data. "The Moto Q is a real must-have device that enables true seamless mobility by liberating all of us from the constraints of our offices and living rooms," said Ed Zander, chief executive officer of Motorola, Inc. "On Verizon Wireless' broadband EV-DO network, the Moto Q brings together all of the converged solutions you need to work, stay in touch or have fun. With the best voice, data and design technology in one ultra-thin, intelligent, hard- working device, the Moto Q allows you to be productive and entertained wherever you go." The Moto Q will redefine what customers expect from a QWERTY handheld. With Windows Mobile software, Moto Q puts a "mini notebook" in Verizon Wireless customers' pockets by providing enough power to let them leave their laptop at home to check e-mail*, review presentations, and stay connected for a week or a weekend. Couple that with its "cool enough for Friday night" design, multiple entertainment options and simple, intuitive features, and the Moto Q will help Verizon Wireless customers stay productive, creative and in- touch while on-the-go and however they choose. Denny Strigl, president and chief executive officer of Verizon Wireless, said, "Enterprise technology, consumer electronics and mobile are converging to create major productivity advantages for the work world. But those advantages have only been available to a select few -- until now. The Motorola Q offers power, style and ease-of-use in a cool ultra-thin format, giving Verizon Wireless customers an uncompromising experience in one device." The Moto Q also makes good business sense for companies -- big and small - - providing a converged mobility solution to help organizations improve their business, increase productivity and efficiency and enhance customer satisfaction. Features of the Moto Q from Verizon Wireless include: -- Integrated Bluetooth(R) 1.2 wireless technology for communicating with compatible headsets, car kits and certain other devices equipped with Bluetooth** technology -- EV-DO access for fast downloads of data, e-mail and large attachments -- Wireless Sync for anytime connectivity with e-mail, calendar and contacts synchronization -- Thinnest QWERTY device in the world - 11.5mm includes a familiar thumbwheel to enhance the navigation experience -- Seamless access to corporate applications, messaging, organizational tools and IT support, from across the campus and around the world -- Synchronization with e-mail, calendar, contacts, and tasks entries, regardless of platform or ISP -- Integrated with Windows Mobile 5.0 software for the convenience of users and IT with access to Yahoo!, Hotmail(TM) and other POP3 -- All standard desktop document views supported including: Microsoft Word(R), Excel(R), PowerPoint(R), Adobe Acrobat(R), etc. -- Supports audio and video formats -- Dual, stereo-quality speakers -- Easy integration with existing IT systems for enhanced IT support -- Enabled for leading corporate e-mail solutions -- Flexibility enables loading of standard corporate VPN -- Password authentication helps ensure network integrity
Billion--with a 'B'
WL ed: Motorola is not yet licensed with IDCC for 3G or 2G Posted by: lastchoice PTC Selects Option GT MAX Delivering HSDPA/UMTS/EDGE Connectivity to Polish Mobile Users LEUVEN, Belgium, May 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Option N.V. (Euronext: OPTI; OPNVY), the wireless technology company, today announced that Polska Telefonia Cyfrowa Sp. z o.o. (PTC) has selected Option's GlobeTrotter GT MAX offering its mobile customers not only the fastest, but also the easiest to use 3G HSDPA/UMTS data card featuring Option's unique flip-out integrated antenna design. The GlobeTrotter GT MAX is customized to the exacting requirements of PTC and will be marketed as the "Blue Connect UMTS/EDGE/GPRS, HSDPA Ready". When PTC rolls out its HSDPA network later this year, a simple firmware upgrade via the operator's website will enable PTC's customers to connect at HSDPA speeds of 1.8 Mbps. Since November 2005, Blue Connect data cards have been offered in the HSDPA-ready' version using two other Option data cards: the GlobeTrotter 3G/EDGE 'HSDPA Ready' and the GlobeTrotter FUSION+ 'HSDPA Ready'. PTC announced in March of this year that HSDPA will be introduced within the framework of the Blue Connect service in 2006. PTC, with more than 10.2 million customers at the end of 2005, holds a leadership position in the Polish mobile market with a 35.1% subscriber share. Their Blue Connect is one of the strategic and most popular services offered by PTC promoting the 'fastest wireless internet - with no limit on data transfer or connection time'. Blue Connect enables convenient, high speed internet access whether at home, in the office or on the go. You just plug the Blue Connect data card to your laptop and let the system automatically choose for you the fastest locally available wireless internet access connection.
Billion--with a 'B'
Posted by: lastchoice Handset Revenues to Peak in 2008 Reaching $129.9B DUBLIN, Ireland--(Business Wire)--May 19, 2006-- Mobile handsets generated $117 billion in revenue in 2005. The top three vendors increased share to over 60 percent of total revenue. This report considers the changing nature of a mobile handset and examines the wide range of applications impacting its development, including mobile music, mobile games, mobile TV, mobile camera, mobile camcorder, and mobile organizer. The report provides vendor market share and forecasts for the mobile handset market both in terms of revenue and subscribers for all the regions. The mobile handset is evolving in two directions. On the one hand, it represents a convergence of feature-sets in a multifunctional device. On the other hand, it represents a divergence of feature-sets in devices focused on specialized applications. This evolution has turned a mobile handset into much more than a medium for voice communication, enhancing the utility of the device and accelerating its growth. This evolution also means that handset manufacturers need competencies in areas that were traditionally not their domain. The roll-out of next-generation networks is opening up new frontiers in innovation in mobile handsets. The high speeds made possible by these networks are enabling a slew of new and novel applications. Increasingly, with the proliferation of applications, voice is becoming a secondary factor when purchasing a mobile device. As high-end markets reach near saturation levels in terms of new subscribers, low-priced handsets are emerging to cater to low-income groups, bringing the mobile phone within reach of all classes of society. Mobile handsets are beginning to penetrate pre-teen and senior citizen market segments, a factor that will make these devices virtually ubiquitous during the forecast period of this report. The mobile handset market has been witnessing phenomenal growth and mobile devices have been undergoing unparalleled advances. Nevertheless, many mobile vendors are finding it difficult to survive in this market as evidenced by the recent exit of Siemens and Alcatel from this business. The reason primarily lies in the falling prices of mobile devices at the low end and intensifying competition at the high However, prices of mobile handsets will keep shrinking and devices at the lower end will incorporate features found in high-end devices. Both of these factors will propel the growth of mobile handset shipments which will more than double over the next 7 years.
The regions of Middle East & Africa, China, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America will witness double-digit growth in handset shipments over the next 7 years. On the other hand, regions that already have a high penetration of handsets, such as Europe, North America, and Japan, will see a slowdown in growth. Despite increase in shipments of the other three major vendors, Samsung, LG Electronics, and Sony Ericsson, their market shares have suffered modest declines. BenQ-Siemens had a dismal year as it slipped from fourth to sixth position. Mobile handsets generated $117.2 billion in revenue in 2005, an increase of 14.9 percent over the sales in 2004. Mobile handset revenue will peak at $129.9 billion in 2008, and will then begin to decline, reaching $125.0 billion in 2012. In 2005, Nokia, Motorola, and Samsung garnered a share of over 60 percent of handset revenue. Sony Ericsson was in fourth place in terms of revenue. Sony Ericsson 4th in revenue, LG 4th in shipments Nokia, Motorola, and Samsung were the top three vendors both in terms of revenue and shipments, the report said. These three vendors increased their share of revenue to over 60 percent in 2005. Sony Ericsson was in fourth place in terms of revenue and LG was in fourth place in terms of shipments. The research report predicted that mobile handset revenue will peak at $129.9 billion in 2008, and will then begin to decline, reaching $125.0 billion in 2012. It said 815.2 million handsets were shipped in 2005, but the shipments will more than double by 2012 to reach 1.7 billion handsets.
Billion--with a 'B'
Posted by: olddog967 mschere: While it is true the the current LG PLA does not cover unlimited 3G sales, any additional royalty will only occur under specific circumstances. Except in regard to CDMA 2000 infrastructure (see PLA article 2.4) there is no so called "threshold" amount in the PLA. In addition, while Article III of the license is titled "LICENSE FEE AND ADDITIONAL ROYALTY", when you read the article you will see that the only additional royalty is if LG acquires other terminal unit businesses.
Posted by: rmarchma IDCC quarterly revenues for latest five quarters as follows: 2005 First Quarter: General Dynamics $4.7m Recurring Royalty = $30.8m NEC (32%) $11.4m ($3.3m fixed 2G per quarter and $8.1m 3G) Sharp (27%) $9.6m Sony Ericy (12%) $4.3m Ericy fixed recurring $1.5m per quarter Sanyo fixed PDC/CDMA2000 $1.1m per quarter Others Recurring Royalty $2.9m Total 2005 first quarter = $35.5m 2005 Second Quarter: General Dynamics $5.5m Recurring Royalty = $33.1m NEC (36%) $13.9m ($3.3m fixed 2G per quarter and $10.6m 3G) Sharp (20%) $7.7m Sony Ericy (estimated) $3.1m (10% of total revenues for first six months less first quarter) Ericy fixed recurring $1.5m per quarter Sanyo fixed PDC/CDMA2000 $1.1m per quarter Late royalty report from 1st qtr $1.1m Others Recurring Royalty $4.7m Total 2005 second quarter = $38.6m 2005 Third Quarter: Past years true-up on new licensees $10.2m (Kyocera = $10m for one prior year) Product and Technology $4.5m (Gen’l Dynamics $3.5m; Phillips $1m) Recurring Royalty = $33.8m NEC (24%) $11.6m ($3.3m fixed 2G per quarter and $8.3m 3G) Sharp (19%) $9.2m Sony Ericy $4.2m Kyocera CDMA2000 fixed recurring $2.5m Ericy fixed recurring $1.5m per quarter Sanyo fixed PDC/CDMA2000 $1.1m per quarter Others Recurring Royalty $3.7m Total 2005 third quarter = $48.5m 2005 Fourth Quarter: Product and Technology $4.3m (Gen’l Dynamics $2.5m; Phillips $1.8m) Recurring Royalty = $36.2m NEC (28%) $11.3m ($3.3m fixed 2G per quarter and $8.0m 3G) Sharp (25%) $10.1m Sony Ericy (10%) $4.0m Kyocera CDMA2000 fixed recurring $2.5m Ericy fixed recurring $1.5m per quarter Sanyo fixed PDC/CDMA2000 $1.1m per quarter Others Recurring Royalty $5.7m Total 2005 fourth quarter = $40.5m 2006 First Quarter: Total Quarterly Revenues = $51.6m Product and technology fees $2.0m (primarily Phillips estimated at $1.5m) Recurring Royalty = $49.6m NEC (22%) $11.3m ($2.2m fixed 2G ended in Feb ‘06 and $9.1m ongoing 3G) LG fixed recurring (22%) $11.3m (for 2.4 months in first quarter, full quarter = $14.3m per quarter) Sharp (18%) $9.3m Sony Ericy $3.9m (estimated based on 2005 average) Ericy fixed recurring $1.5m per quarter Kyocera fixed CDMA2000 recurring $2.5m per quarter Sanyo fixed PDC/CDMA2000 $1.1m per quarter Lucent CDMA2000 fixed $.7m per quarter (only includes licensed Tantivy patents) Others Recurring Royalty $8.0m (includes HTC, RIM, Sierra, Sanyo for GSM/WCDMA, Toshiba, Option, Danger, Quanta, Arima, etc) Total 2006 first quarter = $51.6m
Notice the significant increase in “other” licensee revenues provided by a hodgepodge of different licensees, especially over the latest two quarters. This is especially meaningful since IDCC lost almost another $1m per quarter from other 2G licensees per the third quarter 10Q as follows: “In addition, by December 31, 2005, we will have completed amortization of deferred revenue from other 2G agreements, which collectively contributed $2.5m or 2% of our revenues in the first nine months of 2005.” I think that Arima Communications, who was signed at the end of the third quarter of 2005, might be providing a good bit of this latest quarterly increase in "other" licensee revenues.
I will try to provide some additional thoughts on IDCC’s “other” licensees a little later. When HTC first licensed with IDCC, less than half its revenues came from phone-enabled devices. Now I would guess that a major percentage of its revenues involve phone-enabled devices, but I don’t know how much. I believe that a recent prepaid advance of $15m received in the first quarter came from HTC. If the prepaid is for 1 year, then the indicated quarterly revenues are $3.75m. If the prepayment is for 2 years, then the indicated prepayment is almost $2m per quarter. An excerpt from a previous post today on this issue as follows: ..."in addition, the company has received a $15m royalty prepayment in the first quarter of 2006 from an existing Taiwanese-based licensee which had exhausted its previous prepayment".
I speculate that this second $15m to $16m prepayment received in the first quarter is from either RIMM or Arima Communications. There was no indication on the second prepayment that it was also due to exhausting a previous prepayment, but only that it was from an existing licensee. As to your question about the length of time that these prepayments cover, we really don't know for sure. I would guess between 1 to 2 years. However, I know that Sharp made a prepaid advance one time that was estimated to last for only 10 months at the time of the advance. We do know that Sony Ericy has made two prepaid advances estimated to last 2 years for each of the prepayments.
RIMM is another licensee that could be providing a significant part of the other licensee quarterly revenues. RIMM’s fourth quarter revenues amounted to $560m of which 70% or $392m pertains to handheld devices. RIMM sold 1.1m of these Blackberry devices in the fourth quarter, for an indicated average retail selling price of $350 per device. A 1% royalty would amount to almost $4 per unit, but I would think that there might be some maximum royalty cap per unit on these expensive devices. Sanyo has a fixed royalty on CDMA2000 handsets of $1.1m per quarter, but a per unit royalty on GSM and WCDMA handsets. When Sanyo updated its license in 2004, $5m of the advance was allocated as a prepayment credit against the GSM and WCDMA future handset sales. I don’t know how large Sanyo’s market share is for these handsets, but they are selling dual-mode 2G/3G handsets to Vodaphone Live and Orange in Europe
Danger is another recent licensee, who makes the popular Hiptop devices. I think that they are a private company, and thus no public info is available for them. I don’t think that they would generate significant revenues to IDCC though. Quanta Computer licensed with IDCC late in the third quarter of 2005, along with Arima. Quanta is the world’s largest notebook computer maker, who has fairly recently entered into PDA phones. They had an order with Europe’s O2 for these devices, and there is speculation that they might receive some rather large orders from HP and Acer for PDA phones in 2006. If I had to just make a guess and pull numbers out of the air, I would estimate the following breakout for “other” licensee revenues for the first quarter as follows: HTC = $2.0m Total Other = $8.0m
Posted by: Corp_Buyer "primary responsibility for royalty payment resided with the OEM whose brand name is on the handset" - given the choice, both companies will choose to use the lower rate, which is probably with a large OEM, so it seems logical that a large OEM with the lower rate will pay their royalties to IDCC. Of course, when there is a small OEM with a higher rate than the ODM, or no license at all with IDCC, then the ODM must pay, it seems to me. Thanks for all your financial analyses and commentary. MO,
Posted by: rmarchma IDCC’s Licensing Revenues by years and licensees Detail re IDCC’s licensing revenues by year and by licensee from 1991 through the first quarter of 2006 as follows: The following licensing/royalty revenue is based on info from the 10Q's and 10k's. The earliest I could get back to was 1991. 1991 = 0 1992 = $3m (possibly GM Hughes) 1993 = 0 1994: Total 1994 = $28.5m 1995: Total 1995 = $67.7m 1996: Total 1996 = $28.7m 1997: Total 1997 = $6m 1998: Total 1998 = $92m 1999: Total 1999 = $66.3m 2000: Total 2000 = $51.4m 2001: Total 2001 = $52.6m 2002: Denso discontinued standards $9.7m Kyocera discontinued standards $6.9m NEC pre-2002 infrastructure $7.8m Nokia engineering services $4.5m Recurring Royalty Revenues = $59.0m NEC 2002 recurring $22.5m ($12.4m 2G settlement and $10.1m 3G recurring) Sharp recurring $26.2m ($23.5m PDC and $2.7m GSM/3G) Samsung arbitration $0.5m Others Recurring Royalty $9.8m Total 2002 = $87.9m 2003: Sony Ericy past years’ settlement $20.3m Ericy past years’ settlement $10.6m ($14m - $3.4m expected insurance reimbursement ) Other past year true-ups $0.3m Nokia engineering services $1.0m Recurring Royalty Revenues = $93.0m NEC recurring $33.4m ($13m 2G settlement and $20.4m 3G) Sharp recurring $28.5m ($19.5m PDC and $9.0m GSM/3G) Sony Ericy recurring $13.0m Ericy fixed recurring $6.0m Others Recurring Royalty $12.1m (includes HTC, RIM, Sanyo, Sierra, etc) Total 2003 = $125.2m 2004: Past years true-up on new licensees $1.4m Licensee discontinued standards $0.4m General Dynamics $0.1m Recurring Royalty Revenues = $101.8m NEC recurring $44.3m ($13m 2G settlement and $31.3m 3G) Sharp recurring $25.1m ($12.1m PDC and $13.0m GSM/3G) Sony Ericy recurring $12.7m Ericy fixed recurring $6.0m Sanyo fixed PDC/CDMA2000 $3.3m ($1.1m per quarter x 3 quarters in 2004) Others Recurring Royalty $10.4m (includes HTC, RIM, Sierra, Sanyo for GSM/WCDMA, Toshiba, Option, Danger, etc) Total 2004 = $103.7m 2005: Past years true-up on new licensees $10.2m (Kyocera = $10m for one prior year) Product and Technology Fees $19.0m Recurring Royalty Revenues = $133.9m NEC recurring $48.5m ($13m 2G settlement and $35.5m 3G) Sharp recurring $36.3m ($9.4m PDC and $26.9m GSM/3G) Sony Ericy recurring $15.6m Ericy fixed recurring $6.0m Sanyo fixed PDC/CDMA2000 $4.4m ($1.1m per quarter) Kyocera fixed CDMA2000 recurring $5.0m ($2.5m per quarter x 2 quarters in 2005) Others Recurring Royalty $18.1m (includes HTC, RIM, Sierra, Sanyo for GSM/WCDMA, Toshiba, Option, Danger, Quanta, Arima, etc) Total 2005 = $163.1m 2006 First Quarter: Total Quarterly Revenues = $51.6m Product and technology fees $2.0m (primarily Phillips) Recurring Royalty = $49.6m NEC (22%) $11.3m ($2.2m fixed 2G ended in Feb ‘06 and $9.1m ongoing 3G) LG fixed recurring (22%) $11.3m (for 2.4 months in first quarter, full quarter = $14.3m per quarter) Sharp (18%) $9.3m
Ericy fixed recurring $1.5m per quarter Kyocera fixed CDMA2000 recurring $2.5m per quarter Sanyo fixed PDC/CDMA2000 $1.1m per quarter Lucent CDMA2000 fixed $.7m per quarter (only includes licensed Tantivy patents) Others Recurring Royalty $8.0m (includes HTC, RIM, Sierra, Sanyo for GSM/WCDMA, Toshiba, Option, Danger, Quanta, Arima, etc) Total 2006 first quarter = $51.6m
Posted by: Dave Davis Just poking around the annual reports for some our licensees: Seems like NECs business segment that applies to 3G is the 'Network Solutions' segment, in which they had about $16.8 billion in revenue for the 12 months ended March 31, 2005. http://www.nec.co.jp/ir/en/library/annual/2005/pdf/ar05-18.pdf Don't we (I-Hub members) have InterDigital's royalty revenue from NEC and Sharp broken out some place? Ron Marchma or olddog?
Posted by: mschere HP smartphone
iPAQ orders
mschere
Posted by: mschere Wireless air cards: Option PCMCIA Thanks for your input..I believe Cingular is also offering Option & Sierra WCDMA PCMCIA cards..
Posted by: Eric LG CU320 (l) and Samsung ZX10 UMTS (WCDMA) in the USA RE:
Best, - Eric -
Posted by: my3sons87 3qtr 2005 market share information on US sales. U.S. Cell Phone Sales Reached 31.6 Million Units in Q3 2005 Wed Nov 02, 2005 1:02 pm According to The NPD Group, the leader in market information for the wireless industry, mobile phone sales to consumers in the U.S. reached 31.6 million units in the third quarter of 2005. This number represents solid incremental growth of seven percent from the second quarter 2005 sales volume of 29.6 million units and an increase of more than 30 percent compared to sales during the same period in 2004. NPD estimates total third quarter 2005 consumer sales of slightly more than $2 billion. "The handset market was very robust in the third quarter," said Neil Strother, research director for mobile devices at The NPD Group. "These numbers reflect strong replacement demand among consumers, coupled with more limited growth from new subscribers." According to NPD's Mobile Phone Track, Motorola continued its leadership in the U.S. market during the third quarter, boasting three of the top five best-selling models, including its popular RAZR device at Cingular Wireless and T-Mobile. During the third quarter, Motorola's demonstrated strength was due in part to a significant gain in share within the Verizon Wireless handset portfolio. The battle continues to be intense among LG, Nokia, and Samsung for the number two market position. Motorola Razr V3 NPD reports that manufacturers' third quarter 2005 unit sales and market shares were as follows: Company - 3Q 2005 Unit Sales (in thousands) - 3Q 2005 Market Share Motorola - 9,458 - 30% LG VX6100 The top-selling handset models during third quarter 2005 were the following: 1. Motorola RAZR V3 In the GSM market, Motorola had the leading share with 39 percent, followed by Nokia with 22 percent and Samsung with 14 percent. During third quarter, LG was the leader in CDMA handsets with a 27 percent market share, with Samsung and Motorola tied in second place at 18 percent.
Posted by: Learning2vest Eric, good get and much appreciated. That statement appears to put the Nokia/QCOM licensing negotiations back on the "proportional" track Nokia has been making noises about recently. I'm talking about the idea that IPR licensing rates should have a direct relationship to the "proportional" value of the IPR contributions a firm has within each standard. Nokia appears to be saying that it's about ALL of the patents involved in making a 3G system function in compliance with a standard, not just some aspects. It's going to be interesting to see how that argument plays out with both QCOM and IDCC in the W-CDMA standards.
Posted by: Eric Nokia's Ollila on IP Pass Through ... RE: << My read was that Nokia may also want to eliminate the license provision that allows QCOM to "pass thru" Nokia's cross-license IPR to QCOM's chip customers. >> ... in response to a question by Tim Long of Banc of America at Nokia's last Earnings CC: ... We respect other people’s IPR, and we are ready to reciprocate to participate in accessing the rights to such IPR, and we expect others to respect the similar principles. If you then look at how we have been able to approach all of this, we have also not only been much more active during the last three or four years particularly, but also much more efficient in supporting our rights, and one example being that a lot of discussion has been going around on pass-through rights. Nokia does not provide any pass-through rights to its patents. So, as an example, when we had in January of this year Kyocera joining a growing list of the CDMA manufacturers who have taken royalty-bearing agreements with Nokia, just as an example of how we have been put into a better position, something that we would not have been positioned to look into in the same way seven or eight years ago. ...
http://seekingalpha.com/article/9264 Along with Nokia, Motorola is one of about a dozen GSM/3GSM IP holders thought not to allow QUALCOMM to pass through any licensed or cross-licensed royalty IP. Best, - Eric -
Posted by: mschere InterDigital fully explains the CURRENT status of the Panasonic PLA on page 10 of the 2005 Annual Report. He's referencing Carpenter's latest report dated May 3 as follows: Hilliard Lyons Equity Research 2 Technology InterDigital Communications May 3, 2006 "• IDCC could sign 3G agreements with other top 6 manufactuers this year. Among the top six manufactuers, only LG Electronics has a 3G licensing deal with IDCC. Based on their prior 2G relationship, we believe IDCC and Sony Ericsson could sign a 3G licensing deal by the end of 2006. Also, given IDCC’s success over the past two years licensing Taiwainse manufacturers, a 3G agreement with BenQ/Siemens is possible. Last, we believe IDCC will finally begin recognizing 3G revenue from Japanese manufactuer Matsushita(Panasonic) during 2006, with whom IDCC signed a 3G agreement in 2001."
Posted by: jimmylee Paul and Irwin Jacobs Article from Smartmoney.com - |