[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 174 (Monday, September 11, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62349-62351]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-19667]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Patent and Trademark Office

[Docket No.: PTO-C-2023-0034]


Joint ITA-NIST-USPTO Collaboration Initiative Regarding 
Standards; Notice of Public Listening Session and Request for Comments

AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Department of 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public listening session; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The International Trade Administration (ITA) creates 
prosperity by strengthening the international competitiveness of U.S. 
industry, promoting trade and investment, and ensuring fair trade and 
compliance with trade laws and agreements. The National Institute of 
Standards and Technology (NIST) promotes U.S. innovation and industrial 
competitiveness by advancing standards, and technology in ways that 
enhance economic security and improve our quality of life. The United 
States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) plays an important role in 
incentivizing and protecting innovation, including innovations 
contributed to international standards bodies. In May 2023, the White 
House announced the United States Government National Standards 
Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology (``the Strategy''), 
which, among other things, seeks to strengthen U.S. engagement in 
standards for critical and emerging technologies. As a means to further 
the implementation of the Strategy, and pursuant to a Request for 
Information on Implementation of the United States Government National 
Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology published by 
NIST (Docket No. NIST-2023-0005), ITA, NIST, and the USPTO (``the 
Agencies'') are initiating a listening session with stakeholders 
focused on issues at the intersection of standards and intellectual 
property. The Agencies are seeking stakeholder input on the current 
state of U.S. firm participation in standard setting, and the ability 
of U.S. industry to readily adopt standards to grow and compete, 
especially as that relates to the standardization of critical and 
emerging technologies.

DATES: The public listening session will be held on Wednesday, 
September 20, 2023, from 1 to 5 p.m. ET. Persons seeking to speak at 
the listening session must attend in person and register by 5 p.m. on 
September 13, 2023. Persons seeking to attend, either in person or 
virtually but not speak at the event, must register by September 18, 
2023. Seating is limited for in-person attendance. Written comments 
will be accepted until September 29, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Public Listening Session: A public listening session focused 
on issues at the intersection of standards and intellectual property 
will take place, in person, in the Clara Barton Auditorium at the USPTO 
headquarters, 600 Dulany Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. The session will 
also be available via live feed for those wishing to attend remotely. 
Registration is required for both in-person and virtual attendance. 
Information on registration is available at https://www.uspto.gov/about-us/events/public-listening-session-innovating-ideas-standards-and-intellectual-property. Registrants must indicate whether they are 
registering as a listen-only attendee or as a speaker participant. 
Requests to participate as a speaker must include:
    1. The name of the person desiring to participate;
    2. The organization(s) that person represents, if any;
    3. Contact information (address, telephone number, and email); and
    4. Information on the specific question(s) of interest to the 
speaker (or their organization) and identification of the primary 
question of interest.
    Speaking slots are limited; preference will be given to speakers 
wishing to address one of the questions raised in this request for 
comments. We will attempt to group speakers by topics relating to the 
questions. Topics and speakers will be announced before the public 
listening session. The agencies have a strong preference for speakers 
to attend in person. Speakers are required to submit their written 
remarks for the listening session in advance through the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov. We will inform each speaker 
in advance of their assigned time slot. If we receive more requests to 
speak than time allows and are unable to assign a time slot as 
requested, we will invite the requestor to submit written comments. 
Time slots will be at least five minutes but may be longer, depending 
on the number of speakers registered. A panel of ITA, NIST, and USPTO 
personnel may reserve time to ask questions of particular speakers 
after the delivery of a speaker's remarks. Outcomes of the listening 
session may include a follow-on request for comments or a further 
focused workshop.
    The roundtable will be physically accessible to people with 
disabilities. Individuals requiring accommodation, such as sign 
language interpretation or

[[Page 62350]]

other ancillary aids, should communicate their needs at least seven 
business days prior to the roundtable to Ms. Lakeshia Harley in the 
USPTO's Office of Policy and International Affairs at 571-272-9300, at 
[email protected], or by postal mail addressed to: Mail Stop 
OPIA, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, 
Alexandria, VA 22314-1450, ATTN: Lakeshia Harley. Attendees joining in 
person should arrive at least a half hour prior to the start of the 
roundtable and must present a valid government-issued photo 
identification upon arrival.

Request for Comments

    You may submit written comments as follows. For reasons of 
government efficiency, comments must be submitted through the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov. To submit comments via the 
portal, enter docket number PTO-C-2023-0034 on the homepage and select 
``search.'' The site will provide a search results page listing all 
documents associated with this docket. Find a reference to this request 
for comments and select on the ``comment'' icon, complete the required 
fields, and enter or attach your comments. Attachments to electronic 
comments will be accepted in Adobe[supreg] portable document format 
(PDF) or Microsoft Word[supreg] format. Information that the submitter 
does not desire to make public, such as an address or phone number, 
should not be included in the comments because comments will be made 
available for public inspection. Visit the Federal eRulemaking Portal 
for additional instructions on providing comments via the portal. If 
electronic submission of comments is not feasible due to a lack of 
access to a computer and/or the internet, please contact the USPTO 
using the contact information below for special instructions regarding 
how to submit comments by mail or by hand delivery.
    Comments containing references, studies, research, and other 
empirical data that are not widely published should include copies of 
the referenced materials. All submissions, including attachments and 
other supporting materials, will become part of the public record and 
subject to public disclosure. The Agencies will not accept comments 
accompanied by a request that part or all of the material be treated 
confidentially because of its business proprietary nature. Therefore, 
do not submit confidential business information or otherwise sensitive, 
protected information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Chris Hannon, at 571-272-7385 or 
Mr. Anthony Quinn, at 202-893-6488. Inquiries can also be sent to 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On May 4, 2023, the White House released the United States 
Government National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging 
Technology (``the Strategy''). The Strategy calls for a whole of 
government approach to reinvigorate our rules-based and private sector-
led approach to standards development. The Strategy seeks to prioritize 
efforts for standards development that are essential for U.S. 
competitiveness and national security including communication and 
networking technologies, semiconductors and microelectronics, 
artificial intelligence and machine learning, biotechnologies, clean 
energy, and quantum information technologies, to name a few. The 
Strategy highlights the importance of widely adopted standards as they 
facilitate access and growth in new markets and support new market 
entrants.
    As a means to achieve increased U.S. private and public engagement 
with standard development organizations, the Strategy identifies the 
following four objectives: (1) investment, (2) participation, (3) 
workforce, and (4) integrity and inclusivity. Each objective is 
accompanied by particular lines of effort, such as helping to remove 
and prevent barriers to private sector participation in standard 
development, improving communications between public and private 
sectors on standards, and educating and empowering the new standards 
workforce.
    Pursuant to a Request for Information on Implementation of the 
United States Government National Standards Strategy for Critical and 
Emerging Technology, Docket No. NIST-2023-0005 (https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2023-19245), the Agencies are seeking 
feedback on issues that stakeholders face at the intersection of 
standards and intellectual property, especially small and medium 
enterprises (SMEs). SMEs are encouraged to self-identify in their 
comment submissions. The listening session and stakeholder feedback 
received will be used to narrow the scope of future collaborative 
efforts between the Agencies and with stakeholders.

II. Focused Listening Session

    The purpose of this listening session and request for comments is 
to obtain public input on areas for ITA-NIST-USPTO collaboration and 
engagement related to the Strategy. We are seeking feedback from a 
broad group of stakeholders, including, but not limited to, private 
sector companies, standards bodies and entities that participate in 
them, licensors and licensees of standardized technologies, academia 
and the general public. To facilitate stakeholder feedback, questions 
are provided below. These questions are not meant to be exhaustive, and 
stakeholders are encouraged to address these and/or other related 
issues and to submit research and data that inform their comments on 
these topics. Responses to these questions may result in the need for 
additional workshops, hack-a-thons, or events to solve the identified 
challenges.

III. Questions for Public Comment

    Respondents may address any, all, or none of the following 
questions and may address additional related topics that implicate the 
intersection of standards and intellectual property rights. Please 
identify, where possible, the questions your comments are intended to 
address. ITA, NIST, and the USPTO invite written responses from the 
public to the following questions:
    1. Do the intellectual property rights policies of foreign 
jurisdictions threaten any of U.S. leadership in international standard 
setting, U.S. participation in international standard setting, and/or 
the growth of U.S. SMEs that rely on the ability to readily license 
standard essential patents?
    2. If responding affirmatively to question 1, what can the 
Department of Commerce do to mitigate the effects of any adverse 
foreign policies relating to intellectual property rights and 
standards? Please clearly identify any such adverse foreign policies 
with specificity.
    3. What more can other entities do, such as standards development 
organizations, industry or consumer associations, academia, or U.S. 
businesses to help improve American leadership, participation in 
international standard setting, and/or increased participation of small 
to medium-sized enterprises that rely on the ability to readily license 
standard essential patents?
    4. Are current fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) 
licensing practices adequate to sustain U.S. innovation and global 
competitiveness? Are there other international models which would 
better serve U.S. innovation in the future?
    5. Are there specific U.S. intellectual property laws or policies 
that inhibit participation in standards development?

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    6. Are there specific U.S. intellectual property laws or policies 
that inhibit growth of SMEs that rely on licensing and implementing 
standards?
    7. Which, if any, actions would be advisable for the Department of 
Commerce to further explore regarding the interplay of intellectual 
property and standards, including but not limited to:
    a. educational guidance to SMEs to become more involved in 
standards;
    b. recommendations for standards development organizations 
regarding intellectual property policies and enforcement thereof;
    c. a database of judicially determined or otherwise voluntarily-
made-public licensing rates for technologies covered by a FRAND 
commitment; and
    d. other voluntary and/or public disclosures?
    8. How can the Department of Commerce reinforce the importance of 
IP-based incentives for participation in international technology 
standards development, especially around critical and emerging 
technologies?
    9. What can the Department of Commerce do to mitigate emergence or 
facilitate the resolution of FRAND licensing disputes? Can requiring 
further transparency concerning patent ownership make standard 
essential patent (SEP) licensing more efficient? What are other 
impediments to reaching a FRAND license that the Department of Commerce 
could address through policy or regulation?
    10. Are there steps that the Department of Commerce can take 
regarding intellectual property rights policy that will help advance 
U.S. leadership in standards development and implementation for 
critical and emerging technologies?
    11. Do policy solutions that would require SEP holders to agree 
collectively on rates or have parties rely on joint negotiation to 
reach FRAND license agreements with SEP holders create legal risks? Are 
there other concerns with these solutions?
    12. What can the Department of Commerce do to help facilitate the 
efficient resolution of FRAND disputes? What can the Department of 
Commerce do with the World Intellectual Property Organization and/or 
standard setting bodies to promote alternative dispute resolution to 
more efficiently resolve FRAND disputes?

Katherine K. Vidal,
Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of 
the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. 2023-19667 Filed 9-8-23; 8:45 am]
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