SEP Technology Landscape Reports
SEP technology landscape reports map the patents likely relevant to a standard where no declaration database exists. Audio codecs, video codecs, Wi-Fi, EV batteries, smart meters and wireless charging have no such database, so the landscape has to be built from the patents themselves. Each report is customized, and shows how many patents there are and who owns them.
Who it's for: SEP holders and implementers working on technologies with no declaration database, along with licensing teams, brokers and investors who need to know who holds the patents in that field.
How a landscape is built
There isn't a declaration database for audio codecs, video codecs, Wi-Fi, EV batteries, smart meters, wireless charging and many other technologies, so the landscape has to be built from the patents themselves.
- Patents are searched and read against the technical content of the standard, then grouped into what's found.
- The landscape shows its size — how many patents there are, and who owns them.
- Ownership history is tracked, including reassignments of patents to non-practising entities.
- The report is customized to the technology and delivered with the underlying patent list.
Landscape report vs. essentiality analysis
A landscape is often the step that decides which patents are worth analysing in that detail.
Landscape report
Works at the level of a whole technology — how many patents there are, who owns them, and how ownership has changed.
Essentiality analysis
Works at the level of a single patent — mapping its claims to specific parts of the standard.
Why reassignments matter
Reassignments change who can assert a patent and how. Tracking them in a landscape shows where a portfolio has been broken up and which parts of a technology now sit with owners whose behaviour differs from the original holder.
Operating company
Has products and cross-licensing exposure of its own, which shapes how and when a patent tends to be asserted.
Non-practising entity
No products, no cross-licensing exposure — often more likely to license or assert a patent on its own terms.
What you receive
- A customized patent landscape report identifying patents likely relevant to the standard
- Counts of the patents found and a breakdown of who owns them
- Ownership history, including any reassignments of patents to non-practising entities
- The underlying patent list, and a call to walk through the findings
Frequently asked questions
What is an SEP technology landscape report?
It's a map of the patents likely to matter for a standard in a field where owners do not declare essentiality to a central database. The report is built by searching and reading patents against the technical content of the standard, then grouping what is found. It shows the size of the landscape, the owners behind it, and how ownership has moved.
Which technologies need this kind of report?
Technologies without a declaration database need it most. Audio codecs, video codecs, Wi-Fi, EV batteries, smart meters and wireless charging are examples: there is no public list of patents declared essential to them, so the patent position has to be established by analysis. Any standardised or widely implemented technology in the same position can be covered. Where a declaration database does exist, declarations give a starting point that these fields lack.
How does a landscape report differ from an essentiality analysis?
A landscape report works at the level of a whole technology, while an essentiality analysis works at the level of a single patent. The landscape identifies patents likely relevant to a standard and describes the set: how many there are, who owns them, and how ownership has changed. An essentiality analysis then maps the claims of one patent to specific parts of the standard. Landscapes are often the step that decides which patents are worth analysing in that detail.
Why do reassignments to NPEs matter?
Reassignments change who can assert a patent and how. A patent that moves from an operating company to a non-practising entity is often more likely to be licensed or asserted on its own terms, because the new owner has no products and no cross-licensing exposure. Tracking reassignments in a landscape shows where a portfolio has been broken up and which parts of a technology now sit with owners whose behaviour differs from the original holder.
Start a landscape report
Tell us the technology and what you need to see, and we'll scope the report.
