Patent Licensing & Assignments Flashcards
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Read the first 7 Patent Licensing & Assignments flashcards as text
What is a royalty in a patent license agreement?
Answer: Compensation paid by the licensee to the licensor for the right to practice the patent
A royalty is the ongoing compensation paid by the licensee to the licensor—often as a percentage of net sales or a fixed per-unit fee—in exchange for the right to practice the patented technology.
What is a cross-licensing agreement?
Answer: An arrangement in which two parties grant each other licenses to their respective patents
A cross-licensing agreement is a mutual arrangement where two patent holders grant each other licenses to their respective patents, often used to resolve infringement disputes or enable both parties to operate freely in a technology space.
What is a patent pool?
Answer: An arrangement where multiple patent holders aggregate their patents and license them as a package to interested parties
A patent pool aggregates patents from multiple holders into a single licensing package, simplifying licensing for implementers and reducing the risk of royalty stacking in technology-dense industries.
What does 'running royalty' mean in a patent license?
Answer: An ongoing royalty calculated as a percentage of sales or per-unit fee based on actual use of the licensed technology
A running royalty is a periodic payment tied to the licensee's ongoing commercial activity—such as a percentage of net sales—providing the licensor with compensation proportionate to actual use.
What did the Bayh-Dole Act primarily establish regarding federally funded inventions?
Answer: It allows universities and small businesses to retain patent rights to inventions arising from federally funded research
The Bayh-Dole Act of 1980 permits universities, nonprofit organizations, and small businesses to elect to retain ownership of inventions made with federal funding, subject to certain government rights including march-in rights.
What is the doctrine of patent exhaustion (first sale doctrine)?
Answer: Once a patent owner makes an authorized sale of a patented item, patent rights in that item are exhausted and downstream purchasers may use or resell it freely
The doctrine of patent exhaustion holds that an authorized sale of a patented product exhausts the patent owner's rights in that specific item, preventing the owner from controlling downstream use or resale.
What is a 'most favored licensee' clause in a patent license?
Answer: A provision guaranteeing the licensee terms at least as favorable as those granted to any other licensee
A 'most favored licensee' clause contractually ensures that if the licensor later grants more favorable terms to another licensee, the current licensee is automatically entitled to those same favorable terms.