Licensing Policy and Technology Adoption in Standard Setting Organizations

I analyze standard setting organizations' decisions on licensing policy and standard's technological specification, and the ensuing implications for social welfare. I find the conditions under which a licensing rule that grants monopoly power to the licensors whose technology is adopted in the standard can be employed by the members of the consortium (ex-post licensing). Moreover, I show that the adoption of ex-post licensing might lead to the inefficient exclusion of an efficient stand-alone licensor. Finally, I discuss the conditions under which a policy of ex-ante licensing can be less efficient than ex-post licensing