On January 13, 2017, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ) issued updated Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property (the Guidelines). The revised Guidelines follow nearly half a year of consideration and public commentary. According to the FTC, the updates were “intended to modernize the IP Licensing Guidelines without changing the agencies’ enforcement approach with respect to intellectual property licensing or expanding the IP Licensing Guidelines to address other topics.” In that vein, the modest updates to the Guidelines affirm that the antitrust agencies still believe that IP issues do not require an altered analysis and that the licensing of intellectual property is generally procompetitive.”
FTC and DOJ Update Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property
By McDermott Will & Emery and Will Diaz on January 18, 2017
Tags: Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property, Commissioner Maureen Ohlhausen, Federal Trade Commission, FRAND terms, FTC, FTC v. Actavis Inc., Illinois Tool Works Inc. v. Independent Ink Inc., IP Licensing Guidelines, Leegin Creative Leather Products Inc v PSKS Inc, PAEs, patent assertion entities, patent trolls, procompetitive, SEPs, standard essential patents, US Department of Justice DOJ Antitrust Division
McDermott Will & Emery
Will DiazWilliam (Will) Díaz litigates and counsels clients on antitrust cases, obtains Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice clearance on mergers, and defends clients in government investigations. Will has significant experience in the interplay between the antitrust and intellectual property laws and the issues that crossover into both areas, including standard-setting activities, patent pools, fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) licensing issues and patent misuse. He also has handled numerous litigations and transactions in the biotech, pharmaceutical and medtech industries. Read William Díaz's full bio.
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