Standard Essential Patents and Telecom Sector, Third Indigenous PHWR attains Criticality, UN Summit of the Future 2024

(General Studies II – Governance section – Statutory, Regulatory and various Quasi-judicial Bodies. Government Policies and Interventions for Development in various sectors and Issues arising out of their Design and Implementation.)

• A potential crisis looms in India’s telecom sector, as certain technology companies leverage Standard Essential Patents (SEPs) in ways that challenge the growth of India’s domestic cellular phone manufacturing industry.
• This complex policy issue has significant implications for national manufacturing ambitions.

Significance of Standard Essential Patents (SEP) –

• These are patents that cover technologies that are adopted by the industry as “standards”. For example, technologies such as CDMA, GSM and LTE are all industry standards in the telecom sector.
• It ensures the interoperability of different brands of cellular phones manufactured by different companies. For example, once GSM was adopted as a standard, all manufacturers had to ensure that the handsets that they manufactured were compatible with GSM. Otherwise, there would be no demand for their phones.

Issues involved in SEP standard setting –

• Controlled by Standard-Setting Organizations (SSOs): The process of setting standards in the technology sector is largely privatised and dominated by “Standard-setting organisations” (SSOs) run largely by private technology companies.
• Limited National Influence: Countries like India, with minimal innovation input, have little control over these standards.
• Patent Holdup: SEP owners can demand high royalties, stifling competition and innovation due to the lack of alternative technologies.
• Failures of FRAND: The SSO’s promise of fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory licensing often falls short, leading to global disputes and massive fines for companies like Qualcomm.

Judicial and Regulatory Policy Challenges in India –

• Competition Commission of India (CCI) vs. Ericsson: In 2013, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) began investigating Ericsson for allegedly abusing its dominant position by demanding excessive royalties for its Standard Essential Patents (SEPs), following a complaint from Micromax. Ericsson contested the CCI’s authority, claiming that jurisdiction over patent abuses belonged solely to the Patent Office. Although a judge initially ruled in favour of the CCI, Ericsson appealed the decision. The case was delayed for several years at the Delhi High Court before a judgment against the CCI led to a further appeal to the Supreme Court of India, where it remains unresolved.
• Judicial Activism and Delays: The Delhi High Court’s interim orders demanding deposits from manufacturers to continue manufacturing have controversially tied up capital for years, impacting the sector’s growth and investment appeal. E.g. Ericsson vs Lava International case took 8 years to resolve.
• Lack of Effective Oversight: Ideally the infringement lawsuits should have been stayed until the competition law issues were resolved. The ordinary course of such litigation in most countries is for the courts to conduct a trial on the validity of the patents, whether there has been infringement and, if so, the damages payable.
• The Production Linked Incentives scheme for manufacturing in India is putting money in the pockets of manufacturers while ignoring the amount of money that is being removed from the same pockets by the owners of SEPs. More pertinently, unlike manufacturers who are investing in India to create jobs, the owners of SEPs are only taking their money out of the country.

Way Forward –

• The European Parliament’s steps to regulate SEPs provide a model that India could consider to protect its manufacturing sector and ensure fair competition.
• Need for the Indian government’s support to the telecom sector.
• India should align its SEP policies with international best practices to foster a healthy, competitive market conducive to domestic and foreign investment.

• The Bombay High Court ruled against the amended Information Technology Rules, 2023, which empowered the Centre to establish a fact-check unit (FCU) to identify fake, false, and misleading information about the government on social media.
• The amended IT Rules, 2023, were struck down for violating constitutional rights under Article 14 (equality), Article 19 (freedom of speech and expression), and Article 19(1)(g) (freedom of profession).
• The expression “fake, false, and misleading” in the Rules was deemed vague, as it lacked a clear definition.
• The court noted that the Rules could have a “chilling effect” on intermediaries such as social media platforms.
• The High Court declared the amended rules unconstitutional, highlighting the importance of maintaining freedom of speech and protecting intermediaries from excessive government control.

Dig Deeper: Read about the earlier struck provision of the Information Technology Act and the Supreme Court judgement associated with it,

• Unit 7 of the Rajasthan Atomic Power Project (RAPP) at Rawatbhata, Chittorgarh, has achieved a critical milestone by reaching criticality.
• It marks the start of controlled fission reactions and moving from the construction phase to the operational phase.
• The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) had previously cleared Unit 7 for its first approach to criticality.
• RAPP-7 is 3^rd in a series of 16 indigenous Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) of 700 MW each.
• Units 3 and 4 of the Kakrapar Atomic Power Station in Gujarat became critical in 2020 and 2023, respectively, prior to RAPP-7.
• RAPP-7 is expected to start power generation later this year.

Dig Deeper: Compare PHWR with Fast Neutron Reactors.

• A report by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Network (AMRSN) reveals growing resistance to commonly used antibiotics in diseases such as urinary tract infections (UTIs), bloodstream infections, pneumonia, and typhoid in India.
• The report highlights resistance patterns in six key pathogenic groups using genomics and whole genome sequencing.
• Gram-negative bacilli, which can cause infections anywhere in the body, remain the most isolated pathogens from the most clinically relevant samples, including blood, urine, and respiratory tract samples.
• Among the Outpatients and Inpatients department Escherichia coli bacillus was the most isolated pathogen followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae.
• Acinetobacter baumannii is the most isolated pathogen in Intensive care units.
• Along with these, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterococcus faecalis were leading isolates.
• Data were collected from 21 regional centres across the country, representing both public and private healthcare sectors.
• This is the seventh detailed report (2023) from the ICMR-AMRSN, tracking trends and mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

Dig Deeper: Read about government initiatives to minimise growing antimicrobial resistance in India.

• At the United Nations “Summit of the Future” in New York, India emphasized the importance of adopting sustainable lifestyles to address climate change.
• Climate discussions often centre on emission reductions, but the emphasis should also be on accessible and practical solutions for all.
• The summit aimed to strengthen global cooperation and address emerging threats.
• A “Pact for the Future,” including a Global Digital Compact and a Declaration for Future Generations, is expected to be adopted.
• Participants include civil society, the private sector, academia, youth, and government representatives.
• Major upcoming events include the UN Climate Conference (COP29) in Azerbaijan, the Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries in Botswana, and the International Conference on Financing for Development (Ffd4) in Spain.

Dig Deeper: Read about the upcoming International Conference on Financing for Development (Ffd4) in Spain.