Via LA HEVC Patent Pool Licensors Sue Microsoft Over HEVC Use in Germany
Three licensors of the Via LA HEVC Patent Pool (M&K Holdings, Gensquare, and Tagivan II) have filed a patent infringement suit against Microsoft in the Landgericht Duesseldorf court in Germany, alleging unlicensed use of High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) technology in several Microsoft products.
The Via LA HEVC patent pool, which now covers VVC as well, covers patents essential to the HEVC video compression standard. The pool includes over 50 licensors and over 550 licensees, including companies such as Apple, Samsung, Sony, and Huawei. The pool was founded by MPEG LA in 2014 and acquired by Via LA when Via merged with MPEG-LA in 2023.
According to the plaintiffs, Microsoft has deployed HEVC in multiple products, including Windows 11, Surface tablets, Xbox consoles, and a downloadable HEVC plug-in sold to Windows 10 users, without proper licensing. Gottfried Schüll, Partner at Cohausz & Florack and counsel for the plaintiffs, stated that Via LA (and previously MPEG-LA) has communicated with Microsoft regarding HEVC licensing since 2015.
Schüll confirmed that the suit seeks an injunction to stop Microsoft from selling the allegedly infringing products in Germany. Schüll explained that German courts can issue and enforce injunctions in patent cases, which can compel companies to cease sales.
Heath Hoglund, President of Via LA, stated: "Our HEVC patent pool has been available for ten years and offers an efficient way to license a large, essential portfolio of IP. Our licensors have patiently engaged the market. Unfortunately, many implementers of the technology remain unlicensed, so the time has come for the patent holders to enforce their rights. We continue to believe that our HEVC patent pool is the most efficient way to license essential IP, and we hope more implementers will join the 500 licensees already part of this pool."
Streaming Media interviewed Gottried Schüll regarding this story. A lightly edited transcript is presented below, and you can watch the interview here. Schüll's interview provided further legal context, including details on the German patent litigation system, potential defenses Microsoft might raise (such as patent invalidity or non-infringement), and the estimated timeline for a decision on the injunction claim (approximately 12 months). Schüll also discussed the German court's view of FRAND licensing and patent pools.
We reached out to Microsoft for comment two days before publishing this article and didn't hear back. We'll update this article if and when Microsoft responds to our request.
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