Context: Earlier this month, Microsoft joined Via Licensing Alliance’s (Via LA’s) HEVC (H.265) patent pool, bringing an end to its disputes with licensors M&K, Gensquare LLC, and Tagivan II in the Landgericht Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf Regional Court) (October 8, 2025 ip fray article). The companies had asserted a total of seven High-Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) standard-essential patents (SEPs) between November 26, 2024 and March 6, 2025, alleging Microsoft had used them in some of its most popular products, including Windows 10, Windows 11, its Surface tablets, and its Xbox consoles (April 7, 2025 ip fray article).
What’s new: M&K, Gensquare LLC, and Tagivan II have filed fresh HEVC suits in the Düsseldorf Regional Court, this time targeting Amazon, alleging that it uses their SEPs in devices capable of playing 4K content, including its Fire TV (the remaining details of the litigation are currently confidential).
Direct impact: After reaching a successful settlement with Microsoft, these suits do not come as a surprise. The actions also underline Cohausz & Florack’s commitment to safeguarding its clients’ interests in complex licensing and technology disputes, the firm has stated. Cohausz & Florack has represented Via LA (previously MPEG LA) licensors in several suits before and has achieved favorable settlements in numerous H.264 cases. It has also been asserting H.265 SEPs since 2022. Cohausz & Florack’s Gottfried Schüll told ip fray in an interview in April that the Microsoft case was unlikely to become a global dispute because “Germany had proven a very effective venue for these types of cases” (April 7, 2025 ip fray article).
Wider ramifications: Just like in the Microsoft case, these suits are important for the video patent licensing market in general, and the video patent pool business in particular. There are currently only two major pool players managing HEVC SEP programs: Access Advance and Via LA. Microsoft is both a licensee and a licensor in Access Advance’s HEVC pool, and of course, now a licensee in Via LA’s HEVC program. Meanwhile, Amazon is currently only a licensee in Access Advance’s HEVC pool (Access Advance HEVC licensee list).
Counsel
Tagivan II, Gensquare and M&K are being represented by Cohausz & Florack’s Gottfried Schull, Christoph Walke, Fabian Vogelbruch, Henning Sternemann, as well as Krieger Mes’s Axel Verhauwen.