[IIS-Logo] Home | Fraunhofer Gesellschaft | Jobs | Contact | Fairs & Events [Image] | Press | Search Business Fields | Competences | Projects & Products AMM Business Answers MPEG Layer-3 - Version 12.98 [Image] Technology ... thank you for your interest in our MPEG Layer-3 audio compression technology. In this Services document you will find answers to the most [Image] frequently asked questions about licensing of Applications MPEG Layer-3 technology and how to contact us. Partners The Fraunhofer Gesellschaft [TOP] Download The Fraunhofer Gesellschaft is the leading Support organization of applied research in Germany. It operates 47 research centers in Germany with Gallery about 9,000 employees, about half of them scientists and engineers. The Fraunhofer Licensing Gesellschaft expands to a worldwide [Image] Organization, especially in USA and Asia. Home of the Fraunhofer Gesellschaft is Munich, Germany. One of the goals of the Fraunhofer policy is a rapid transfer of innovations into products. The total research expenditure is about US$ 700 million. The Fraunhofer Institut Integrierte Schaltungen (Fraunhofer IIS), based in Erlangen, Germany, is one of the 47 research centers. Fraunhofer IIS is the leading international research lab in the field of high quality low bit rate audio coding. Fraunhofer IIS has been the main developer of the most advanced audio coding schemes, like MPEG Layer-3 and MPEG-2 AAC (Advanced Audio Coding). Fraunhofer IIS plays a major role in the ongoing work for the MPEG-4 Audio standardization process and contributes to many other standards bodies as well, like ITU-R TG10/4, ITU-R WP10C, AES and MPEG-IPMP. WWW: [Image]http://www.iis.fhg.de/audio/ http://www.iis.fhg.de/amm/ THOMSON multimedia [TOP] The world´s fourth-largest consumer electronics group, THOMSON multimedia develops, manufactures and markets: televisions, VCRs, camcorders, audio and communication appliances, satellite decoders, DVD players, as well as color TV tubes and professional television equipment (studio equipment, TV cameras, mixers, etc.). With its pan-European brands - THOMSON, TELEFUNKEN and SABA - and its American brands - RCA, GE and ProScan - today the group is the leader in the United States, No. 2 in Europe and is strongly increasing its market presence in Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe. WWW: [Image]http://www.thomson-multimedia.com/ http://www.rca-electronics.com/ http://www.nipper.com/ 1. GENERAL [TOP] Q. I am interested in source coding technology. What can you do for me? A. Licensing source code, developing real-time DSP code as well as DSP-based hardware, and developing codec libraries for desktop computers is part of the Fraunhofer IIS activities. The focus is on (mobile) high-quality low bit rate audiovisual communications (e.g. digital broadcasting systems or internet services). Q. Regarding MPEG Layer-3, do any patent rights exist? A. As for practically any important technology (and particularly for publicly established standards), you should know that patent rights for MPEG Layer-3 exist. Although others may also hold patents, THOMSON multimedia and Fraunhofer IIS have an important portfolio of patents related to MPEG Layer-3. To facilitate the market acceptance and penetration of products using MPEG Layer-3, THOMSON multimedia and Fraunhofer IIS decided to offer companies, that wish to distribute MPEG Layer-3 products, the possibility to obtain a license under the patents of both parties. Q. Who grants licenses under this combined portfolio to use MPEG Layer-3? A. We have split the licensing activities in two parts: 1. THOMSON multimedia handles consumer applications, such as desktop software, broadcast systems, pay-audio services and codec ICs. 2. Fraunhofer IIS handles professional applications, such as ISDN codecs based on DSP hardware, developed as part of a R&D project with Fraunhofer IIS. Q. So, whom should I contact? A. You may address your request to any of us, but the descriptions in the previous answer and the rest of this FAQ should give you some guidance. In order to speed up the process, we would appreciate to receive a description of your business model and your expected use of the technology. You will find the contact information at the end of this document. Q. I just want to buy a MPEG Layer-3 software and/or hardware product. What is available? A. Many companies already licensed our MPEG Layer-3 technology and offer those products. Please visit the Fraunhofer web site (http://www.iis.fhg.de/amm/) for more information. 2. PATENT AND KNOW-HOW LICENSING TERMS AND CONDITIONS [TOP] Q. How much royalties or other fees do you charge? A. The rules of ISO/MPEG determine that licenses have to be granted on fair and reasonable terms. For identical applications, we add that the terms are non-discriminatory. The details depend on the application and the specific business model. Q. What kind of licensing models exist? A. To date, we have developed and granted license agreements for the following applications: THOMSON multimedia o Software decoders (see 2.1.) o Software encoders (see 2.2.) o Hardware codecs for consumer-type applications (see 2.3.) o Pay-audio systems (see 2.4.) o Broadcast systems (see 2.5.) Fraunhofer IIS o Professional applications (see 3.) o MPEG Layer-3 Source and Object Code (see 4.) CREDITS In all cases, we expect that MPEG Layer-3 products reference the licensors, like: "MPEG Layer-3 audio compression technology licensed by Fraunhofer IIS and THOMSON multimedia". 2.1. SOFTWARE DECODERS [TOP] 2.1.1. Free MPEG Layer-3 Software Decoders/Players for Personal Use For the free distribution of decoders we do not charge a running royalty. At the Fraunhofer IIS web site (http://www.iis.fhg.de/amm/download/) you can find the players we have developed and which may be downloaded for free also. Fraunhofer IIS does not give any technical support for the free players. E-mails complaining about bugs in free software will not be answered! More in general, no license fee is expected for desktop software decoders/players that are distributed free-of-charge for personal use. 2.1.2. Commercial MPEG Layer-3 Software Decoders/Players If MPEG Layer-3 software decoders/players are sold (shareware or commercial software), the royalty per decoder is US$ 1.00. We just remark that we have not asserted our patents against decoders of which less than 10,000 units have been sold. 2.2. MPEG LAYER-3 SOFTWARE ENCODERS [TOP] While most of the distribution of MPEG Layer-3 software decoders is free of charge, for all MPEG Layer-3 encoders a license is needed and royalties have to be paid. 2.2.1. Software Encoders not developed by Fraunhofer IIS If you have developed your own software encoder or acquired a software encoder from another developer than Fraunhofer IIS to run MPEG Layer-3, you have to get a "patent-only" license from THOMSON multimedia; the following royalties apply: 1 - 1,000 encoders [Image] US$ 25.00 per unit 1,001 - 2,000 US$ 20.00 per encoders unit 2,001 - 3,000 US$ 15.00 per encoders unit 3,001 - 10,000 US$ 10.00 per encoders unit 10,001 - 100,000 US$ 5.00 per encoders unit > 100,000 encoders US$ 2.50 per unit US$ 15,000 annual minimum, payable upon signature and each following year in January, fully creditable against annual sales. The royalty does not include any on-going support from Fraunhofer IIS. This agreement does NOT cover the right to sell MPEG Layer-3 encoded data (e.g. in "pay-audio" and "broadcast" systems). These rights are covered by the licenses described under 2.4. and 2.5. 2.2.2. "Professional" MPEG Layer-3 Software Encoder The "Professional" MPEG Layer-3 encoder, developed by Fraunhofer IIS, supports bitrates from 8 .. 256 kbps (sample rates 8 .. 48 kHz, mono/stereo). For distribution of the Professional MPEG Layer-3 encoder you have to get a "patent and know-how (professional)" license from THOMSON multimedia (covering the use of all relevant patents as well as know-how); the following royalties apply: 1 - 1,000 encoders [Image] US$ 50.00 per unit 1,001 - 2,000 US$ 40.00 per encoders unit 2,001 - 3,000 US$ 30.00 per encoders unit 3,001 - 10,000 US$ 20.00 per encoders unit 10,001 - 100,000 US$ 10.00 per encoders unit > 100,000 encoders US$ 5.00 per unit US$ 15,000 annual minimum, payable upon signature and each following year in January, fully creditable against annual sales. The royalty does not include any on-going support from Fraunhofer IIS. This agreement does NOT cover the right to sell MPEG Layer-3 encoded data (e.g. in "pay-audio" and "broadcast" systems). These rights are covered by the licenses described under 2.4. and 2.5. 2.2.3. "Advanced Plus" MPEG Layer-3 Software Encoder For applications which do not need an encoder with full MPEG Layer-3 capacity, we believe that the "Advanced Plus" MPEG Layer-3 encoder meets the needs of most customers for personal use. The "Advanced Plus" MPEG Layer-3 encoder is developed by Fraunhofer IIS and supports bitrates up to 56 kbps (sample rates 8 - 24 kHz, mono/stereo), with the additional capability to encode 128 kbps stereo at 44.1 kHz. For distribution a "patent and know-how (advanced plus)" license from THOMSON multimedia is needed (covering the use of all relevant patents as well as know-how); the following royalties apply: 1 - 10,000 encoders US$ 12.00 per unit 10,001 - 100,000 encoders US$ 8.00 per unit > 100,000 encoders US$ 4.00 per unit US$ 15,000 annual minimum, payable upon signature and each following year in January, fully creditable against annual sales. The royalty does not include any on-going support from Fraunhofer IIS. This agreement does NOT cover the right to sell MPEG Layer-3 encoded data (e.g. in "pay-audio" and "broadcast" systems). These rights are covered by the licenses described under 2.4. and 2.5. 2.2.4. "Advanced" MPEG Layer-3 Software Encoder The "Advanced" MPEG Layer-3 software encoder is developed by Fraunhofer IIS and supports bitrates up to 56 kbps (sample rates 8 .. 24 kHz, mono/stereo). Please contact Fraunhofer IIS for licensing details. 2.3. HARDWARE CODECS FOR CONSUMER-TYPE APPLICATIONS [TOP] If you have developed an MPEG Layer-3 hardware decoder (DSP or ICs), you have two licensing possibilities: * Integrating a licensed IC (e.g. from Micronas Intermetall), in which case the license fee is paid for by the IC supplier; or * In all other cases the royalty per decoder is US$ 1.25. If you also integrate an encoder into your hardware device, the royalty is US$ 2.50 per unit. 2.4. PAY-AUDIO SYSTEMS [TOP] The licenses mentioned under section 2.2 (MPEG Layer-3 software encoders) exclude reselling of MPEG Layer-3 encoded data. To use MPEG Layer-3 in a music-on-demand system, where MPEG Layer-3 encoded data is sold to end-users, you have to get a "pay-audio" license from THOMSON multimedia; the following terms apply: * 1.0 % of the price to the listener (minimum US$ 0.01 per download). * Reporting is to be based on the system as used by the copyright organizations. * US$ 15,000 annual minimum, payable upon signature and each following year in January, fully creditable against annual sales. We do not charge a royalty for free distribution of MPEG Layer-3 encoded data (e.g. if parts of songs are distributed to promote mail-order CD-sales). 2.5. BROADCAST SYSTEMS [TOP] The licenses mentioned under section 2.2 (MPEG Layer-3 software encoders) exclude broadcasting. To use MPEG Layer-3 in a broadcasting system (such as Internet Radio), you have to get a "broadcast" license from THOMSON multimedia; the following terms apply: * Fees charged for broadcasting are based on the gross broadcast income (including advertising and subscription). * Gross broadcast income less than US$ 250,000 per year, an annual fee of US$ 2,500; or * Gross broadcast income greater than US$ 250,000 per year, a royalty of 1 % of gross broadcast income. 3. MPEG LAYER-3 APPLICATIONS FOR PROFESSIONAL USE [TOP] MPEG Layer-3 applications for professional use are licensed by Fraunhofer IIS. * Decoder: US$ 6.25 per unit * Encoder: US$ 25.00 per unit 4. MPEG LAYER-3 SOURCE AND OBJECT CODE LICENSED BY FRAUNHOFER IIS [TOP] Source and Object Code for MPEG Layer-3 encoder and decoder are licensed by Fraunhofer IIS. 4.1. SOURCE CODE FOR GENERAL PURPOSE CPU´s (PC´s) [TOP] The following license fees apply for source code for General Purpose CPUs (e.g. running under Windows, MacOS and UNIX): * US$ 30,000 for the decoder source code; and * US$ 60,000 for the encoder source code. Please note that you still need a license for products created with the source code (see above). 4.2. DSP SOURCE AND OBJECT CODE [TOP] DSP code for efficient real-time implementations of MPEG Layer-3 is licensed on a non-exclusive basis. Typically, we offer a "ready-to-run" implementation, using standard-I/O routines, on one SINGLE target hardware platform, defined cooperatively between our customer and Fraunhofer IIS. The following platforms are supported for MPEG Layer-3: * DSP563xx (Motorola) * TMS320C67 (Texas Instruments) * ADSP21x6x (Analog Devices) * TM-1100 (Philips) Fraunhofer IIS can offer DSP code for any of these devices, but our favorite is the DSP563xx family from Motorola. For a stereo encoder up to 48 kHz sampling rate, you need at least one DSP56303 plus 192 K * 24 bit external RAM, and for a stereo decoder, you need one DSP56303 plus 64 K * 24 bit external RAM, or one DSP56309 without any external RAM at all. Please note that you may further reduce the necessary processing power by limiting the operation to mono (half power) and/or to lower sampling rates (e.g. half sample rates mean half power again). Due to several special encoding options, please contact Fraunhofer IIS for licensing details. CONTACT INFORMATION [TOP] THOMSON multimedia Mr. Henri Linde Manager, Licensing & Intellectual Property lindeh@thmulti.com 46, Quai Alphonse Le Gallo F-82100 Boulogne Billancourt France voice: +33 1 41 86 52 87 fax: +33 1 41 86 0921 or +33 1 41 86 5638 Fraunhofer IIS Mr. Niels Rump Manager, Business Relations layer3@iis.fhg.de Am Weichselgarten 3 D-91058 ERLANGEN Germany voice: +49 9131 776 611 fax: +49 9131 776 399 ROYALTY SUMMARY [TOP] SOFTWARE CODECS * Decoders: Freeware OK; US$ 1.00 per unit, if sold. * Encoders: o Not developed by Fraunhofer IIS A sliding scale starting at US$ 25.00 per encoder, decreasing to US$ 2.50 per encoder for more than 100,000 units per year. o The Fraunhofer IIS encoders + Professional encoders A sliding scale starting at US$ 50.00 per encoder, decreasing to US$ 5.00 per encoder for more than 100,000 units per year. + Advanced Plus encoders A sliding scale starting at US$ 12.00 per encoder, decreasing to US$ 4.00 per encoder for more than 100,000 units per year. HARDWARE CODECS * Decoders: US$ 1.25 per unit (or paid for by the IC manufacturer) * Encoders: US$ 2.50 per unit having a encoder or full codec MUSIC DISTRIBUTION * For pay-audio, music-on-demand, internet-radio and other types of selling mp3 files, the royalty is 1% of the revenue (minimum US$ 0.01 per download). MINIMUM ROYALTIES * All agreements with running royalties have an annual minimum of US$ 15,000, creditable against annual royalties. [TOP] [Image] Copyright ©1998 Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft