IP Licensing under EU & UK Competition Law - Minimising Risk & Common Pitfalls

Introduction

For many businesses, IP rights are valuable assets - and licensing is one of the main ways of exploiting them.

Other firms need IP licences to get their products and services to market.

This new virtual classroom seminar is aimed at those who wish to further their understanding of the treatment of IP licensing under EU and UK competition law, and who want to learn how to craft IP licences in a way that minimises competition law risk.

The session will begin with a presentation and then use a series of case studies to explore some of the common competition law pitfalls that arise in the context of IP licensing.

What You Will Learn

This live and interactive course will cover the following:

• Relationship between IP and competition law
• Relationship between EU law and UK competition law
• EU and UK competition law's approach to IP licence agreements and their potential pro- and anti-competitive effects
• Consequences of infringing competition law
• The competition law framework for IP licensing:
• Article 101 TFEU/ Chapter 1 and the block exemption 'safe harbours'
• EU and UK Technology Transfer Block Exemption (‘TTBE’): potentially problematic IP licence clauses under Article 101/Chapter 1 and the TTBE
• Agreements outside the TTBE - Technology Transfer Guidelines
• Potential application of Vertical Agreements and R&D Block Exemptions
• Residual issues under restraint of trade
• Article 102/Chapter 2:
• Refusal to license ‘essential’ IP rights
• Abuse of FRAND licensing commitments (ie circumstances where enforcement or litigation may constitute an abuse)
• Unfair licensing terms and tying, and
• Certain patenting practices
• Exhaustion of rights and parallel trade within the EEA and UK

Recording of live sessions: Soon after the Learn Live session has taken place you will be able to go back and access the recording - should you wish to revisit the material discussed.