The Dutch part of EP 119 – allegedly essential to the UMTS standard – was found to be obvious over the latest draft of the UMTS standard pre-priority date read in conjunction with a document of a UMTS Working Group proposing changes thereto. The skilled person would read these together and so be confronted with the problem solved by the Patent. The solution claimed by the Patent would be one of two obvious solutions, therefore lacking inventive step. The high threshold for assuming a problem-invention was not met, particularly in light of prior art already discussing the problem.
A full summary of this case has been published on Kluwer IP Law.
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