Dolby has sued Snapchat over patent infringement related to the AV1 video codec, challenging its royalty-free status. InterDigital also filed lawsuits against Amazon Fire devices supporting AV1. These legal actions come despite AV1 being promoted as an open, royalty-free alternative to proprietary codecs, potentially undermining its adoption eight years after its release.

European regulators previously investigated AOMedia's licensing policy but closed the case "for priority reasons," making no determination on compliance. Intellectual property expert Florian Mueller notes that many streaming services operated without codec licenses for years, but patent holders now seek royalties amid streaming's growth.

Unlike HEVC, which had most essential patent holders sign FRAND pledges, AV1's development didn't include such commitments. Mueller fears someone could make prohibitive royalty demands specifically to discourage AV1 use. The lawsuits against Snapchat and Amazon could determine whether AV1 remains viable or becomes another victim of patent disputes that have plagued video codecs for decades.