The EU Has/Has Not Achieved A Proper Balance Between Competition Law And Intellectual Property

INTRODUCTION

Intellectual Property (IP) rights are those rights granted by law in order to protect tangible property and in general any product of the human intellect. The rationale behind IP rights is to reward and act as an incentive, for making investments in research and development of new ideas and inventions, as well as to facilitate innovation. The main types of IP rights include patents, trademarks, copyright, designs, know-how and computer software.

IP rights are typically granted by national laws and enforced on a national basis. As a result of their national nature, many differences exist in substantial and procedural provisions regarding the protection of IP rights, within the EU. However, despite the said differences, all IP laws grant monopoly rights to their owners, due to their exclusive nature. This is regarded as the starting point of a debate around the relationship between competition law and IP rights. Many support that IP and competition law