UK government sets out SEP licensing reforms to cut disputes and improve market access

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UK SEP licensing reforms

Highlights

UK government will collaborate with the judiciary to explore a court-based early FRAND determination process and develop licensing guidelines to support SEP negotiations.
Plans include a voluntary IPO-led FRAND opinion service, improved patent information access, emphasis on pre-litigation conduct, and guidance for less-experienced SEP licensees.
Measures aim to speed up dispute resolution, enhance business confidence in standardised technology use, and reinforce the UK's influence in international standards development.

Planned measures for licensing and disputes

As reported by GOV.UK, the government has published its response to a consultation on standard essential patents, outlining practical steps intended to improve transparency and support more efficient licensing negotiations. The measures are designed to make the SEP framework easier for businesses to navigate, particularly where products and services rely on technologies that must comply with technical standards.

Among the main proposals, the government says it will work with the judiciary to explore a court-anchored early FRAND, fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory, determination process within existing England and Wales court proceedings. It also plans to develop FRAND licensing guidelines and launch a call for evidence on the feasibility and design of a voluntary IPO-led FRAND opinion service that could give parties an early view on whether a proposed SEP licence offer falls within a FRAND range.

The government also plans to improve access to SEP information through a voluntary route for rightsholders to provide standard-related patent information at the IPO. In parallel, it will support more constructive pre-litigation conduct, including better pre-action information exchange and clearer signposting to existing alternative dispute resolution services.

Industry implications for UK technology sectors

SEPs protect innovations that are essential to technical standards, allowing products and services to connect, communicate and operate across borders. They underpin economically significant technologies including smartphones, Wi-Fi, connected vehicles, medical technology and advanced manufacturing, and their role is increasing as more SEPs are declared worldwide.

The government says it will also develop practical guidance with industry for good-faith SEP licensing negotiations, with particular emphasis on businesses that have limited SEP licensing experience. It further plans to support better essentiality assessment by encouraging higher-quality information around existing services and exploring non-binding best practice principles for essentiality assessments and reporting.

Alongside those steps, the government is seeking to raise awareness of existing alternative dispute resolution options, expand the IPO's SEP Resource Hub and continue international collaboration on SEP licensing issues. It says the broader aim is to help businesses use standardised technologies with greater confidence, speed up dispute resolution and strengthen the UK's role in shaping international standards for future technologies and markets.

In our earlier article on the surge in complaints handled by the UK Office for Responsible Business Conduct (ORBC), we explained how expanded OECD guidelines are driving greater scrutiny of multinationals’ environmental, human-rights and supply-chain practices. We also noted that while the ORBC cannot impose fines, its investigations, public findings and limited mediation options can still create meaningful reputational and operational pressure for companies operating under increasingly complex standards.

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