Facelift For Two Millennials: DOJ And FTC Update Guidelines For IP Licensing And International Enforcement

More than 21 years ago, the US antitrust agencies issued guidance to the business community on two critical topics of antitrust enforcement: (1) the licensing of intellectual property rights¹ and (2) international enforcement and agency cooperation.² Published only one day apart, the twin guidelines have proven influential. Many major competition jurisdictions have followed the US example and issued guidance on one or both topics. Several of these non-US guidelines have since been updated, with significant revisions especially on intellectual property matters during the past two years. Earlier this month, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued the very first update to their IP Licensing Guidelines since April 1995.³ The agencies also published updated International Antitrust Guidelines.⁴