Intellectual property licensing tensions in incorporating open source into formal standard setting context — The case of Apache V.2 in ETSI as a start

Abstract

Open Source Software is playing an increasing role in ICT standardizations on future technologies such as 5G and Internet of Things. Formal standard settings organizations (SSOs) are exploring ways to incorporate open source approach. This paper depicts the difference between open source licenses and the current SSOs legal framework in dealing with intellectual property rights, mainly the FRAND license commitment for patented technologies and the distribution for copyrighted software in specifications. Such difference might cause tensions in the two scenarios of interactions between SSO standards and open source: the implementation phase and the standardization activity phase. Some of the tensions are currently hypothetical. However, one recent and concrete example from ETSI, hosting an open source project under Apache v.2, might shed light on how SSOs can (cannot) avoid tensions by making changes to the governing framework.