Standards Development Organizations Receive Limited Antitrust Protection With Proper Filing

By Connie Robinson and Cary E. Zuk

On June 22, 2004, President Bush signed into law the Standards Development Organization Advancement Act of 2004 (H.R. 1086) (the "Act"), which provides antitrust safeguards to certain standards development organizations if they follow the notice procedures in the statute and conduct their activities within the scope of that notice. Recognizing that standard setting can promote competition, such as by ensuring a common interface for products that may be substituted for one another, the Act is designed to help facilitate the development of voluntary consensus standards -- technical standards written by non-profit standard developing organizations that are used by the industry and the government.