Category: Licensing Negotiation Groups
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New EU Technology Transfer Guidelines take unclear positions on collective patent licensing, but won’t enable LNGs to get traction
The European Commision’s updated Technology Transfer Guidelines discuss patent pools and LNGs, and they are unlikely to matter as they are legally and economically flawed. They even contradict themselves.
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U.S. deputy antitrust chief: “totally different approach from U.S. and EU side” to licensing negotiation groups
The divergence between U.S. and EU antitrust enforcers on the question of licensing negotiation groups could hardly become clearer. ip fray’s views are materially consistent with the U.S. government’s perspective.
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USDOJ Antitrust Division investigates Automotive Licensing Negotiation Group members in pushback against EU, German perversion of law
A Civil Investigative Demand is a preliminary step that does not always, but often leads to a governmental antitrust lawsuit in U.S. federal court.
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European Commission’s “reality check” shows patent pools and SEP licensors have concerns over unworkable and overreaching rules
The European Commission is trying to revive the spirit of the failed EU SEP Regulation through competition law guidance.
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U.S. deputy antitrust chief: EU Commission’s comfort letter to Licensing Negotiation Group “concerning and unusual”, irreconcilable with competition law principles
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Dina Kallay gave strong and clear answers to questions from the audience, including ip fray, at a hybrid SEP conference today.
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European Commission’s competition watchdogs present patent pool-related market power theory that makes zero sense
DG COMP’s market power theory concerning SEP pools has no support in logic, reason, fact or the case law of the European Court of Justice.
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European Commission proposes condoning group boycott by implementers of standards for six months: licensing negotiation groups
The European Commission’s Directorate-General for Competition (DG COMP) today started consultations for its technology transfer guidelines.
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EU Commission issues comfort letter to Automotive Licensing Negotiation Group: officially policy-driven competition (non)-enforcement
Context: About a year ago, the Bundeskartellamt (Federal Cartel Office (FCO) of Germany) granted what we called an unprecedented cartel clearance to an Automotive Licensing Negotiation Group (ALNG) for standard-essential patents (SEPs) consisting mainly of the three major German automotive groups (June 10, 2024 ip fray article). Pool administrators and SEP holders doubt that an…
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German cartel clearance of Automotive Licensing Negotiation Group for SEPs won’t matter if SEP holders simply say no
The extent to which Germany’s Federal Cartel Office is prepared to condone an Automotive Licensing Negotiation Group for SEPs is extremely limited, if not negligible.
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German Federal Cartel Office grants unprecedented cartel clearance to Automotive Licensing Negotiation Group for SEPs
The German Federal Cartel Office today announced an unprecedented and problematic decision to grant cartel clearance to an Automotive Licensing Negotiation Group for standard-essential patents. But any company participating in such a group can still be held liable in other jurisdictions.