Context: Since December, Via Licensing Alliance (Via) has had a complete organizational restructuring, including:
- Heath Hogland stepping down from his role as Via President (December 15, 2025 ip fray article) and joining Sisvel as Chief IP Officer (January 7, 2026 ip fray article); and
- Access Advance acquiring Via’s HEVC/VVC patent pools (December 15, 2025 ip fray article), and the latter appointing Kevin Mack as its new President.
What’s new: Avanci today announced the appointment of Jane Bu as Senior Vice President of Licensing. Ms. Bu brings more than 20 years of multi-party patent licensing experience, and, in her new role, she will be leading the development of new licensing platforms and supporting Avanci’s global expansion.
Direct impact: Ms. Bu joined Via over 11 years ago and served as General Counsel before being promoted to Chief Licensing Officer following Via’s merger with MPEG LA in May 2023. As part of this role, Ms. Bu temporarily relocated to Shanghai to be closer to existing and potential partners in China (July 29, 2025 ip fray article). Now, within Avanci, Ms. Bu is expected to bring her “significant experience working across international markets, particularly in Asia”, and ”her understanding of regional licensing dynamics and relationship-driven negotiation norms will support Avanci’s continued global growth”, Avanci noted in its release.
Wider ramifications:
- In a statement to ip fray, Via President Kevin Mack said: “Jane made a number of important contributions to Via over her 12 years at Via, and we wish her all the best as she begins the next chapter of her career.” The news comes just ahead of Via’s annual Business Summit (which this year takes place in Rome between March 17 and March 20), which ip fray will be attending as an official media partner and meeting Via’s new President Mr. Mack (February 25, 2026 ip fray article).
- Ms. Bu’s appointment comes a day after Avanci also appointed Yuji Uchigasaki, former Toshiba IP executive, as Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Japan Market Unit at Avanci (March 11, 2026 Avanci LinkedIn post). It also comes just over a week after the launch of the Avanci Wi-Fi licensing platform, covering Wi-Fi 6 and (soon) Wi-Fi 7 SEPs, and announcement of inaugural patent sublicense agreement with Mercedes-Benz (March 4, 2026 ip fray article). In February, Avanci also announced the signing of its first Avanci Video licensee, and, in parallel, published the rates for its program (February 5, 2026 ip fray article).
In a statement today, Avanci’s CEO Kasim Alfalahi said:
“Anyone who has spent time with Jane quickly recognizes the insight and perspective she brings to the licensing industry. Jane is a real force in this space. She understands the needs of both licensors and licensees and what it takes to align industries around efficient solutions. With Jane joining an exceptional team at Avanci, the possibilities ahead are tremendous as we continue expanding our platforms.”
On joining Avanci, Ms. Bu said:
“I’ve long admired the impact Avanci has had in transforming how companies approach licensing. The platform model has proven its ability to simplify complex licensing landscapes. I’m excited to join Avanci as the company continues expanding its platforms into new technologies and markets where efficient licensing solutions are increasingly needed.”