Apple, Microsoft and BMW, together with a broad group of other tech companies and carmakers, have called on the EU to take action against so-called patent trolls, who buy up patents in the hope of making a profit through licenses or lawsuits.
In a letter to the European Commission, the group of 35 companies and four industry groups warned that patent trolls were stifling innovation.
They called for Thierry Breton, the new commissioner who oversees industrial policy and technology, to draw up tough rules to stop patent hoarders from “gaming the system”.
In particular, they asked for EU courts to take a softer approach, noting that in the past judges have issued blanket bans on products when just a single patent was found to be infringed.
“The experience of our member companies indicates that Europe’s patent system is not working properly and is undermining Europe’s ability to compete globally in the next frontier of technologies,” said Patrick Oliver, executive director of IP2Innovate, one of the industry groups that signed the letter.
“We are urging Commissioner (Thierry) Breton to draft a set of guidelines that address imbalances in the patent system — in particular guidelines that support the application of a proportionality requirement in patent enforcement by judges around Europe, as required by EU law,” the companies said.
Full Content: Financial Times
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
EU Conducts First-Ever Raids on a Company Under Foreign Subsidies Regulation
Apr 23, 2024 by
CPI
FTC Moves to Ban Non-Compete Agreements, Aiming to Boost Labor Mobility
Apr 23, 2024 by
CPI
Federal Judge Nods at $418M Deal in Real Estate Antitrust Suit
Apr 23, 2024 by
CPI
Mexican Watchdog Probes Amazon and Mercado Libre Over Loyalty Bundles
Apr 23, 2024 by
CPI
Competition Commission of India to Probe AI Landscape for Competition
Apr 23, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Economics of Criminal Antitrust
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Navigating Economic Expert Work in Criminal Antitrust Litigation
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
The Increased Importance of Economics in Cartel Cases
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
A Law and Economics Analysis of the Antitrust Treatment of Physician Collective Price Agreements
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Information Exchange In Criminal Antitrust Cases: How Economic Testimony Can Tip The Scales
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI