Editing MPEG-2 (section)

==Patent pool==
As of January 3, 2024, MPEG-2 [[patent]]s have [[Term of patent|expired]] worldwide, with the exception of only Malaysia, where the last patent is expected to expire in 2035.<ref>{{cite web |title=3 Malaysia MPEG-2 Patents left |url=https://bryanquigley.com/pages/mpeg2-patent-tracker.html |website=Bryan Quigley | date=2024-01-03}}</ref> The last US patent expired on February 23, 2018.<ref name=PatentList>{{cite web |title=MPEG-2 Attachment 1 |url=https://www.mpegla.com/wp-content/uploads/m2-att1.pdf |website=MPEG LA |access-date=29 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190529164140/https://www.mpegla.com/wp-content/uploads/m2-att1.pdf|archive-date=29 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/02/15/world_farewells_the_last_mpeg2_patent/|title=Waddawewant? Free video codecs! When dowe .. oh, look, the last MPEG-2 patent expired!|author=Richard Chirgwin|date=15 February 2018|website=The Register|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180215143836/https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/02/15/world_farewells_the_last_mpeg2_patent/|archive-date=15 February 2018}}</ref>

[[MPEG LA]], a private patent licensing organization, had acquired rights from over 20 corporations and one university to license a [[patent pool]] of approximately 640 worldwide patents, which it claimed were "essential" to use of MPEG-2 technology. The patent holders included [[Sony]], [[Mitsubishi Electric]], [[Fujitsu]], [[Panasonic]], [[Scientific Atlanta]], [[Columbia University]], [[Philips]], [[General Instrument]], [[Canon Inc.|Canon]], [[Hitachi]], [[JVC Kenwood]], [[LG Electronics]], [[Nippon Telegraph and Telephone|NTT]], [[Samsung]], [[Sanyo]], [[Sharp Corporation|Sharp]] and [[Toshiba]].<ref>{{cite web |title=MPEG-2 Patent Portfolio License Program |url=https://www.mpegla.com/programs/mpeg-2/ |website=MPEG LA |access-date=29 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190529164538/https://www.mpegla.com/programs/mpeg-2/ |archive-date=29 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.audiompeg.com/us_patents.asp|title=audioMPEG.com - - - US Patents|date=18 March 2004|access-date=4 May 2018|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20040318031406/http://www.audiompeg.com/us_patents.asp|archive-date=18 March 2004}}</ref> Where [[Software patent]]ability is upheld and patents have not expired (only Malaysia), the use of MPEG-2 requires the payment of licensing fees to the patent holders. Other patents were licensed by Audio MPEG, Inc.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.audiompeg.com/|title=Sisvel - We protect ideas - Home|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130102130545/http://www.audiompeg.com/|archive-date=2013-01-02}}</ref> The development of the standard itself took less time than the patent negotiations.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://audio-video.gnu.org/audio/#TO2005|title=Audio/Video - GNU Project - Free-Software Foundation|url-status=live|archive-url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20121224160712/http://audio-video.gnu.org/audio/#CALG|archive-date=2012-12-24}}</ref> Patent pooling between essential and peripheral patent holders in the MPEG-2 pool was the subject of a study by the University of Wisconsin.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://siepr.stanford.edu/publicationsprofile/163|title=Economics of Patent Pools When Some (but not all) Patents are Essential|last=Quint|first=Dan|author2=Amit Gandhi|work=Working Paper|access-date=2009-10-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100710024425/http://siepr.stanford.edu/publicationsprofile/163|archive-date=2010-07-10|url-status=dead}}</ref>

According to the MPEG-2 licensing agreement '''any''' use of MPEG-2 technology in countries with active patents (Malaysia) is subject to [[royalties]].<ref name=MPEG2PatentPoolLicense>{{cite news |title=MPEG-2 License Agreement |publisher=MPEG LA |url=https://www.mpegla.com/programs/mpeg-2/license-agreement/ |access-date=29 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190529164747/https://www.mpegla.com/programs/mpeg-2/license-agreement/ |archive-date=29 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> MPEG-2 encoders and decoders are subject to $0.35 per unit.<ref name=MPEG2PatentPoolLicense/> Also, any packaged medium (DVDs/Data Streams) is subject to licence fees according to length of recording/broadcast. The royalties were previously priced higher but were lowered at several points, most recently on January 1, 2018.<ref name=MPEG2PatentPoolLicense/> 
An earlier criticism of the MPEG-2 patent pool was that even though the number of patents had decreased from 1,048 to 416 by June 2013 the license fee had not decreased with the expiration rate of MPEG-2 patents.<ref name=MPEG2PatentPoolMay2013Business>{{cite news |title=Patent Pools May Create Anticompetitive Effects, New Report Finds |publisher=[[Business Wire]] |url=http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20130509005972/en/Patent-Pools-Create-Anticompetitive-Effects-Report-Finds |date=2013-05-09 |access-date=2013-06-06 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140820224617/http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20130509005972/en/Patent-Pools-Create-Anticompetitive-Effects-Report-Finds |archive-date=2014-08-20 }}</ref><ref name=MPEG2PatentPoolJanuary2013Forbes>{{cite magazine |title=MPEG-LA Shows Need to Rebuild IP Foundations |author=Bret Swanson |magazine=[[Forbes]] |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/bretswanson/2013/04/30/mpeg-la-shows-need-to-rebuild-ip-foundations/ |date=2013-04-30 |access-date=2013-05-19 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130430144859/http://www.forbes.com/sites/bretswanson/2013/04/30/mpeg-la-shows-need-to-rebuild-ip-foundations/ |archive-date=2013-04-30 }}</ref><ref name=MPEG2PatentPoolJanuary2013FoxNews>{{cite news |title=America's patent system is all wrong for today's high-tech world |author=Steve Forbes |publisher=[[Fox News Channel]] |url=https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/americas-patent-system-is-all-wrong-for-todays-high-tech-world/ |date=2013-03-18 |access-date=2013-06-05 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130616102104/http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2013/03/18/america-patent-system-is-all-wrong-for-todays-high-tech-world/ |archive-date=2013-06-16 }}</ref>

=== Patent holders ===
The following organizations have held patents for MPEG-2, as listed at [[MPEG LA]]. See also [[List of United States MPEG-2 patents]].
<section begin="MPEG-2 patents"/>
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! Organization
! Patents<ref name="mpegla">{{cite web |title=MPEG-2 Patent List |url=https://www.mpegla.com/wp-content/uploads/m2-att1.pdf |website=[[MPEG LA]] |access-date=7 July 2019}}</ref>
|-
|[[Sony Corporation]]
|311
|-
|[[Technicolor SA|Thomson]] Licensing
|198
|-
|[[Mitsubishi Electric]]
|119
|-
|[[Philips]]
|99
|-
|[[General Electric|GE]] Technology Development, Inc.
|75
|-
|[[Panasonic Corporation]]
|55
|-
|CIF Licensing, LLC
|44
|-
|[[JVC Kenwood]]
|39
|-
|[[Samsung Electronics]]
|38
|-
|Alcatel Lucent (including Multimedia Patent Trust)
|33
|-
|Cisco Technology, Inc.
|13
|-
|[[Toshiba Corporation]]
|9
|-
|[[Columbia University]]
|9
|-
|[[LG Electronics]]
|8
|-
|[[Hitachi]]
|7
|-
|[[Orange S.A.]]
|7
|-
|[[Fujitsu]]
|6
|-
|[[Robert Bosch GmbH]]
|5
|-
|[[General Instrument]]
|4
|-
|[[British Telecommunications]]
|3
|-
|[[Canon Inc.]]
|2
|-
|[[KDDI Corporation]]
|2
|-
|[[Nippon Telegraph and Telephone]] (NTT)
|2
|-
|ARRIS Technology, Inc.
|2
|-
|[[Sanyo Electric]]
|1
|-
|[[Sharp Corporation]]
|1
|-
|[[Hewlett-Packard]] Enterprise Company
|1
|} <section end="MPEG-2 patents"/>