According to a 13 September 2005 news release, the RFID Consortium (in formation) announced that it has designated MPEG LA, LLC, to administer a patent licensing arrangement for RFID technology.  This is an important first step in developing the consortium.

According to the release, MPEG LA is the world leader in one-stop technology platform patent licenses, enabling users to acquire patent rights necessary for a particular technology standard or platform from multiple patent holders in a single transaction as an alternative to negotiating a license with each of them. It is believed that the licensing model pioneered and employed by MPEG LA may provide a solution. MPEG LA currently licenses portfolios of essential patents for the MPEG-2, IEEE 1394, DVBT, MPEG-4 Visual (Part 2), MPEG-4 Systems and AVC/H.264 (also known as MPEG-4 Part 10) standards.

Engagement of MPEG LA to administer this program is an important step toward addressing the needs of the marketplace, and to help this emerging technology reach its full potential, said RFID Consortium designated spokesperson, "We recognize MPEG LA's critical role and proven track record as independent patent licensing administrator."

The RFID Consortium has entered into a letter of intent with MPEG LA under which MPEG LA will issue a call for patents to determine essential patent holders and implement the consortium’s licensing plan.  On August 9, 2005, a group of companies announced its intention to form the IP licensing consortium to offer both an efficient alternative patent management approach for patent holders and convenient alternative access to RFID patents for manufacturers and end-users.

Companies that have signed term sheets to become members of the consortium as of the date of this release include:

·    Alien Technology Corporation

·    Applied Wireless Identification Group, Inc. (³AWID²)

·    Avery Dennison Corporation (NYSE: AVY)

·    Moore Wallace, an RR Donnelley Company (NYSE: RRD)

·    Symbol Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: SBL)

·    ThingMagic, Inc.

·    Tyco Fire & Security (NYSE: TYC)

·    Zebra Technologies Corporation (Nasdaq: ZBRA)

Stay tuned for further developments.