Bluetooth qualification process

[Karel]

When using a certified bluetooth module with integrated antenna (e.g. from Silicon Labs or Laird) in another product and
using the preprogrammed vid and pid that comes with the module, does one need to go through the bluetooth qualification process (and pay 11,000 dollar) or not?
Ofcourse, bluetooth sig thinks you should but what are your thoughts?

[bookaboo]

If you mean https://www.bluetooth.com/develop-with-bluetooth/qualify/ then as far as I know you only need that if you want to market your product as Bluetooth and/or use their logo. We have a few devices that connect to Android and IoS over BLE, but we don't market them as "Bluetooth" so we don't bother with Bluetooth Qualification.
Whether you pre-qualify or not is up to Bluetooth Sig, it's their standard so they can enforce how they please.

Regulatory compliance is a separate issue, you will still have to go through RED or whatever is applicable for your market(s). Having pre-certified modules here certainly helps keep complexity and costs down, but you can't rely only on those.

[Siwastaja]

Their website explains it clearly: it applies to a product and does not inherit from other designs. But it's just a marketing fee to use their trademarked brand and logo, nothing technical. Just don't use their logos, job done.

[tom66]

You need to do it to use any Bluetooth trademark including the logo.  If you call the function "BT" then you can probably get away with it, as long as you don't use the Bluetooth rune or any other trademark (like "BLE").

There are potentially patents and IP that you do not pay royalties for if you use a module without paying Bluetooth SIG, but arguably those are a matter for the module manufacturer... so it is a bit of a legal grey area (and the people that will advise you on the realities here are not cheap).

Any intentional radiator will need to go through your market's appropriate certification, but it may be possible to transfer the certification if you use a PCB antenna built into a module and comply with the manufacturer's recommendations there.  If you use your own antenna, you almost certainly have to do the RF certification.