IP Quick Tip: How To Implement The UPC's Approach To FRAND In Practice (2025) (Video)

The UPC has recently issued its first two decisions on FRAND, setting important guidelines for SEP owners and implementers. These rulings have triggered much discussion—but what do they mean for your licensing strategy?

The Local Divisions in Mannheim and Munich have started to flesh out the UPC's approach to FRAND. The judgments provide important guidelines for any company active in the SEP space —guidelines that must be taken into consideration if you do not want to risk dropping the ball in what is sometimes called the "FRAND ping-pong".

The SEP owner has to take the initiative, and it seems that the UPC will take a slightly more formal approach to the first steps than, for example, the German courts used to. If you want to begin licensing discussions with a company you believe uses your SEP, it is important that you start with a written notice. This notice should list the SEP in question, the infringing products and an infringement mapping on the