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The PWG has received a Letter of Assurance from Ricoh Company, Ltd. which states that US Patent 6889263 is essential to the IPP MailTo delivery method of event notification. Please see  <a href=ftp://ftp.pwg.org/pub/pwg/general/loa/ipp/20050721174635246.pdf>ftp://ftp.pwg.org/pub/pwg/general/loa/ipp/20050721174635246.pdf</a>  for further details including the patent holders position on licensing. Because of the legal nature of patents, I will include a reminder that standard IEEE policy regarding communications about patents includes the following: 1. We do not discuss the validity or essential nature of patents or their claims in our standards forums or e-mail 2. We do not discuss the costs related to use of a specific patent 3. We do not discuss licensing terms or conditions other than to acknowledge the patent holders stated position regarding licensing 4. We do not discuss ongoing or threatened litigation 5. We do not remain silent, rather, we formally object if inappropriate topics are discussed. There may be discussion about the direct effect this LOA may have on the IPP MailTo working draft and its status progressing toward PWG Candidate Standard. Please use the IPP@PWG.ORG mail list for any such discussion (not PWG-ANNOUNCE). ---------------------------------------------- Harry Lewis IBM STSM Chairman - IEEE-ISTO Printer Working Group http://www.pwg.org IBM Printing Systems http://www.ibm.com/printers 303-924-5337 ----------------------------------------------