DigiTimes has reported that second-tier manufacturers must first pay the royalties owed to Philips before they can join their Veeza licensing program. In some cases, manufacturers could face charges of US$20-30 million.
With Taiwan's top optical disc makers having already signed up Royal Philips Electronics' Veeza licensing scheme for its CD-R patents, second tier players have reportedly felt pressure to sign on as well, but industry sources noted that some second-tier players could face charges of US$20-30 million if they want to enter the program.
According to sources at Philips Intellectual Property & Standards organization (IP&S), any CD-R disc maker looking to sign up for Veeza is required to first pay the cumulative CD-R royalties owed to Philips.
While this is a considerable amount of money, disc manufacturers will need to pay it if they want to export their discs to the US and Europe. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes.
