Context: Last year, Via Licensing Alliance (Via) announced plans to establish several patent licensing programs around semiconductor technologies (September 25, 2025 ip fray article). A few months later, it launched the first of these programs, focused on direct random access memory (DRAM) technology (November 18, 2025 ip fray article).
What’s new and direct impact: Via has announced a new semiconductor-related licensing program, this time for NAND memory technology (“NAND” is derived from the logical operation “not and”). It has also made a formal call for patents, inviting organizations to submit relevant assets for evaluation with a view to potentially being included in the licensing program.
Wider ramifications: Via’s move into semiconductor memory technologies comes at a time of rapid scaling in AI infrastructure, including data centers. And, while patent litigation and licensing are nothing new for the semiconductor space in general, there has been a spate of disputes recently in relation to advanced semiconductor technologies with particular relevance to AI applications, such as vertical stacking (May 12, 2026 ip fray article) and gallium nitride (May 7, 2026 ip fray article). This suggests that there is opportunity for an operator like Via to streamline multi-stakeholder patent licensing efforts in this field.
At a high level, NAND enables persistent, high-density data storage in a relatively energy-efficient manner. It complements DRAM, which provides ultra-rapid working memory for active computation, such as live AI models, for example. Hyperscale data centers, enterprise data centers, and cloud service providers rely on both technologies and could be potential licensees to Via’s NAND program.
The key holders of NAND IP assets are presumably concentrated in East Asia and North America. While recognized names in the memory chip industry will likely be among them, it is presumably the case that organizations from other industries could be prospective licensors to Via’s new program too. In terms of standards, Joint Electron Device Engineering Council Solid State Technology Association (JEDEC), Open NAND Flash Interface Working Group (ONFI), and Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) specifications are likely to play a role in the NAND program.
Since merging with MPEG LA in 2023, Via has been expanding into diverse technology fields, while building on its longstanding expertise in audio and video codec standards. Speaking to ip fray last month, Via President Kevin Mack said that scaling up the pool operator’s emerging data center-focused solutions, including the DRAM program, would be a major emphasis for the remainder of 2026 (April 1, 2026 ip fray article). Earlier this week, Via announced two new licensors and a new licensee in its Voice Codec program (May 20, 2026 ip fray article).
In a statement announcing the NAND program and call for patents, Mr. Mack said:
“NAND memory will play an increasingly important role in enabling large-scale data storage and retrieval. Building on our work in DRAM licensing, this new program expands our data center efforts and positions us to support the next generation of AI technologies.”
Sullivan & Cromwell’s Garrard Beeney will serve as licensing counsel for Via’s data center licensing efforts.