[Fedora-legal-list] Have the US MP3 patents expired?

Mon Nov 16 01:28:32 UTC 2015

I would like to ask if MP3 patents in the US have expired.  Based on my
analysis, I believe that the MP3 (MPEG-1 Layer III) patents have
expired.  While it is possible I have calculated the dates wrong, I have
double checked them, and I have provided my reasoning and examined how
the previous patent expiration calculations were done.

Of the ones listed in the email to fedora devel:
http://www.redhat.com/archives/rhl-devel-list/2007-November/msg00028.html

Here are the ones that are not expired based on that email:

US Patent 5703999 expires November 18, 2016
US Patent 5924060 expires July 13, 2016
US Patent RE39,080 expires April 25, 2023.

US Patent 6009399 expires April 16, 2017
US Patent 6185539 expires February 6, 2018

I believe that all the other patents listed in that email have expired.

I would like to discuss each of them.

For calculating the patent term, I am primarily using the information at:
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s2701.html

==================================================
Claim: US Patent 5703999 expires November 18, 2016
My belief: US Patent 5703999 expired at the latest on December 30, 2014.

The November 18, 2016 expiration was calculated from 20 years after the
filing date of November 18, 1996.

However, this patent is actually a continuation of application Ser. No.
08/338,618, filed as PCT/DE93/00448 May 18, 1993.

Because it is a continuation the original date of May 8, 1993 needs to
be looked at.  Therefore it contains a specific reference to an earlier
filed patent, so by 35 U.S.C. 154, the term is 20 years from the "from
the date on which the earliest such application was filed. "  This would
be May 8, 2013.

However because the international application was filed before June 8,
1995, the patent may be one with "the greater of the “twenty-year term”
or seventeen years from the patent grant.  '999 was granted on December
30, 1997, so 17 years would be December 30, 2014.

So the actual date US Patent 5703999 expires may be December 30, 2014.

So US Patent 5703999 expires at the latest on December 30, 2014 so this
patent is expired.

Patent:  5703999
Filed:  18 nov 1996  Granted:  30 dec 1997  Expiration:  32 feb 2015
Summary:  Process for reducing data in the transmission and/or storage
of digital signals from several interdependent channels  Notes:
http://patft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?patentnumber=5703999 file+20:
[2016, 11, 18] related_patent+20:[2015, 2, 32]

==================================================
Claim: US Patent 5924060 expires July 13, 2016
My belief: US Patent 5924060 expired either April 4, 2011 or August 29, 2007

The July 13, 2016 expiration was calculated as 17 years after the grant
date of July 13, 1999.

However this is a continuing application.  "A patent granted on a
continuation, divisional, or continuation-in-part application that was
filed on or after June 8, 1995, will have a term which ends twenty years
from the filing date of earliest application for which a benefit is
claimed "  Since the continuation was filed on March 20, 1997, the date
should be 20 years from the first filing date.  This is I believe is
either Ser. No. 07/177,550, filed on Apr. 4, 1991 or application serial
No. PCT/DE87/00384, filed Aug. 29, 1987.  These have 20 year dates of
April 4, 2011 or August 29, 2007.  Both of these dates have passed, so
this patent is now expired.

Patent:  5924060
Filed:  20 mar 1997  Granted:  13 jul 1999  Expiration:  14 jan 2011
First Date:  14 jan 1991
Summary:  Digital coding process for transmission or storage of
acoustical signals by transforming of scanning values into spectral
coefficients  Notes:
http://patft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?patentnumber=5924060
file+20: [2017, 3, 20] related_patent+20:[2011, 1, 14]
This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/650,896,
 filed on May 17, 1996, (now abandoned) which was a continuation of
 application Ser. No. 08/519,620, filed on Sep. 25, 1995, (now abandoned)
 which was a continuation of application Ser. No. 07/977,748, filed on Nov.
 16, 1992, (now abandoned), which was a continuation of application Ser.
 No. 07/816,528, filed on Dec. 30, 1991, (now abandoned), which was a
 continuation of application Ser. No. 07/640,550, filed on Jan. 14, 1991,
 (now abandoned), which was a continuation of application Ser. No.
 07/177,550, filed on Apr. 4, 1991, (now abandoned) as international
 application serial No. PCT/DE87/00384, filed Aug. 29, 1987, claiming
 priority to foreign appl. No. P3629434.9, filed Aug. 29, 1986.

==================================================
Claim: US Patent RE39,080 expires April 25, 2023.
My belief: US Patent RE39,080 expired May 6, 2014.

This expiration was calculated as 17 years from the grant date of the
reissue of April 25, 2006

However it is a reissue of Patent 5627938.   From
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1405.html

"The maximum term of the original patent is fixed at the time the patent
is granted. While the term may be subsequently shortened, e.g., through
the filing of a terminal disclaimer, it cannot be extended through the
filing of a reissue. "

So we need to calculate the term of the of 5627938.  This is a
continuation of application Ser. No. 07/844,811, filed on Mar. 2, 1992.
 5627938 was granted on May 6, 1997. 5627938 was filed before June 8,
1995, its term is the greater of 17 years from grant or 20 years from
first filing date.  So these are May 6, 2014 or March 2, 2012, so the
expiration is May 6, 2014.    This date has passed, so this patent is
expired.

Patent:  RE39080
Filed:  22 sep 1994  Granted:  06 may 1997  Expiration:  06 may 2014
Summary:  Rate loop processor for perceptual encoder/decoder  Notes:
Reissue of 05627938 filed 13 aug 2002 granted 25 apr 2006
http://patft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?patentnumber=RE39080 file+20:
[2014, 9, 22] related_patent+20:[2008, 12, 32] grant+17:[2014, 5, 6]

http://patft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?patentnumber=5627938

==================================================
Claim: US Patent 6009399 is required for MP3.
My belief: US Patent 6009399 is not an MP3 patent.

'399 was filed in April 16, 1997, with a related foreign patent filed in
April 26, 1996.  Both these dates are well after the MP3 specification
came out. ISO/IEC 11172-3 was published in August 1993, so the
specification is prior art.  Secondly, looking at the claims, they are
using two or more psycho acoustic models.  MP3 encoding can be done with
one psycho acoustic model, so I believe it is possible to create an MP3
encoder that does not infringe this patent.

http://patft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?patentnumber=6009399

==================================================
Claim: US Patent 6185539 is required for MP3
My belief: US Patent 6185539 is not an MP3 patent

'539 was filed in May 26, 1998 with a PCT filed in February 19, 1997.
Both these dates are well after the MP3 specification came out. ISO/IEC
11172-3 was published in August 1993,  Secondly, looking at the claims,
most of them mention being a modification of ISO/IEC 13818-3:1995 which
is the MPEG-2 specification.  The description claims that it is an
enhancement to allow low bit rate encoding of ISO/IEC 13878-3 (MPEG2
layer 3).  So I believe that this is at best an enhancement of MPEG-2
layer 3.

http://patft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?patentnumber=6185539

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