Software companies that set technical standards could be forced to show all their products and fix maximum fees before deciding on technical specifications.

European Commission Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes told a Brussels forum that companies involved in negotiations to set standards should declare their interests and set maximum royalty rates so that others involved in the process can make informed decisions about which technologies to use.

She added that if any proprietary technology was used in a standard, then this type of disclosure would prevent companies having to shell out more cash than they expected.

Some companies have set a standard which has forced others to buy proprietary technology from them, she claimed.

She added that patent and maximum royalty disclosure increases the effectiveness of the standard setting process, lead to more competitive products, and reduce antitrust problems. As things stood, the standards setting process was open to abuse, and that unscrupulous companies could attempt to have their technology included in a standard so that they could charge high licence fees to all the subsequent users.

Kroes called for competition law to be used to counter that behaviour. X

Check out
Out Law