Continental Automotive Raises Patent Concerns Over C-V2X Mandate

Continental Automotive representatives warned that limiting part of the 5.9 GHz band exclusively for cellular vehicle-to-everything use could have negative implications because of intellectual property concerns. Continental supports C-V2X technologies and “has every intention of designing and manufacturing automotive parts and components that use C-V2X and the 5.9 GHz band,” the company told an aide to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. Shifting to a sole technology standard “complicates parts suppliers’ ability to license patented technologies included within the standards,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 19-138: “The cellular standard essential patents underlying C-V2X technologies incorporate thousands of patented technologies owned by companies throughout the supply chain, most of whom are not based in the United States. As a factual matter, many of the companies that own such patents refuse to license them to companies such as Continental, or insist only on unfair, unreasonable and discriminatory terms.” If not accompanied by a licensing requirement, Continental and its peers must “use a technology for which they may not be able to obtain the intellectual property licenses needed to remain fully in compliance with the U.S. Patent Laws.”