2. Introduction

   In the years since RFC 2026 was published there have been a number of
   times when the exact intent of Section 10, the section which deals
   with IPR disclosures has been the subject of vigorous debate within
   the IETF community.  This is because it is becoming increasingly
   common for IETF working groups to have to deal with claims of
   Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), such as patent rights, with
   regards to technology under discussion in working groups.  The aim of
   this document is to clarify various ambiguities in Section 10 of
   [RFC2026] that led to these debates and to amplify the policy in
   order to clarify what the IETF is, or should be, doing.

   IPR disclosures can come at any point in the IETF Standards Process,
   e.g., before the first Internet-Draft has been submitted, prior to
   RFC publication, or after an RFC has been published and the working
   group has been closed down; they can come from people submitting
   technical proposals as Internet-Drafts, on mailing lists or at
   meetings, from other people participating in the working group or
   from third parties who find out that the work is going or has gone
   on; and they can be based on granted patents or on patent
   applications, and in some cases be disingenuous, i.e., made to affect
   the IETF Standards Process rather than to inform.

   RFC 2026, Section 10 established three basic principles regarding the
   IETF dealing with claims of Intellectual Property Rights:

   (a) the IETF will make no determination about the validity of any
       particular IPR claim
   (b) the IETF following normal processes can decide to use technology
       for which IPR disclosures have been made if it decides that such
       a use is warranted
   (c) in order for the working group and the rest of the IETF to have
       the information needed to make an informed decision about the use
       of a particular technology, all those contributing to the working
       group's discussions must disclose the existence of any IPR the
       Contributor or other IETF participant believes Covers or may
       ultimately Cover the technology under discussion.  This applies
       to both Contributors and other participants, and applies whether
       they contribute in person, via email or by other means.  The
       requirement applies to all IPR of the participant, the
       participant's employer, sponsor, or others represented by the
       participants, that is reasonably and personally known to the
       participant.  No patent search is required.

   Section 1 defines the terms used in this document.  Sections 3, 4 and
   5 of this document address the intellectual property issues
   previously addressed by Section 10 of RFC 2026.  Sections 6 thru 12
   then explain the rationale for these provisions, including some of
   the clarifications that have been made since the adoption of RFC
   2026.  The rules and procedures set out in this document are not
   intended to modify or alter the IETF's current policy toward IPR in
   the context of the IETF Standards Process.  They are intended to
   clarify and fill in procedural gaps.

   A companion document [RFC3978] deals with rights (such as copyrights
   and trademarks) in Contributions, including the right of IETF and its
   participants to publish and create derivative works of those
   Contributions.  This document is not intended to address those
   issues.

   This document is not intended as legal advice.  Readers are advised
   to consult their own legal advisors if they would like a legal
   interpretation of their rights or the rights of the IETF in any
   Contributions they make.