Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Copying an Entire Article and Fair Use
RIGHTHAVEN LLC v. CENTER FOR INTERCULTURAL
ORGANIZING, CASE NO.: 2:10-cv-01322-JCM-LRL, BRIEF OF AMICUS CURIAE
PROFESSOR JASON SCHULTZ
ORGANIZING, CASE NO.: 2:10-cv-01322-JCM-LRL, BRIEF OF AMICUS CURIAE
PROFESSOR JASON SCHULTZ
US Ambassador: Over-Focus On Development “Will Kill” WIPO
W.New, here. Official Transcript of Ambassador King’s December 16, 2010 Press Conference
Monday, December 20, 2010
L’INSTITUT NATIONAL DE L'AUDIOVISUEL (INA) C/ La Société YOUTUBE
TRIBUNAL DE GRANDE INSTANCE DE CRETEIL, Jugement du 14 Décembre 2010, DOSSIER : N° 06/1281, ici.
Bank Competition and Stability: Reconciling Conflicting Empirical Evidence
T. Beck, O. De Jonghe, G. Schepens, here.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
European Competition Network Brief
No. 5/2010 and Special Issue December 2010 - A look inside the ECN: its members and its work
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
L'Autorité de la concurrence estime que Google est en position dominante sur le marché de la publicité liée aux moteurs de recherche
Avis n° 10-A-29 du 14 décembre 2010 sur le fonctionnement concurrentiel de la publicité en ligne.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
EU Commission adopts revised competition rules on horizontal co-operation agreements
Press Release, Horizontal Guidelines, Block exemption regulations applicable to specialisation agreements and research and development agreements
Monday, December 13, 2010
Information Exchanges among Competitors
Antonio CAPOBIANCO, OECD Competition Division, Exchange of Information among Competitors: Antitrust Challenges (Presentation)
Monday December 13, 2010 - 2 pm
Conference Room, Economics Faculty - Trento University
Via Inama, 5 TRENTO
Monday December 13, 2010 - 2 pm
Conference Room, Economics Faculty - Trento University
Via Inama, 5 TRENTO
Friday, December 10, 2010
Contrats d’affiliation de magasins indépendants et modalités d’acquisition de foncier commercial dans le secteur de la distribution alimentaire
Avis n° 10-A-26 du 7 décembre 2010 de l'Autorité de la Concurrence.
Unilateral Competitive Effects of Mergers Between Firms with High Profit Margins
E. B A I L E Y , G. L E O N A R D , A N D L.W U, here.
Thursday, December 09, 2010
Tuesday, December 07, 2010
On facilitating downloading from an illegal source in The Netherlands
FTD v Eyeworks, English translation here.
Monday, December 06, 2010
Saturday, December 04, 2010
Apertura de un expediente sancionador contra SGAE por posibles conductas restrictivas de la competencia,
Comisión Nacional de la Competencia, aqui
Friday, December 03, 2010
Thursday, December 02, 2010
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
The Second Decade of the International Competition Network: Challenges Ahead?
Oliver BUDZINSKI, University of Southern Denmark, "The Governance of Global Competition: Challenges for the Second Decade of the ICN"
Alessandra TONAZZI, Italian Competition Authority, "The Governance of Global Competition: ICN’s Next Decade"
Friday November 26, 2010 8:30 am
Trento Economics Faculty, Law Department
Room 3
via Verdi 53
Trento - Italy
Trento Economics Faculty, Law Department
Room 3
via Verdi 53
Trento - Italy
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Entflechtung als Instrument des Kartellrechts
Sitzung des Arbeitskreises Kartellrecht, Pressemeldung und Arbeitspapier
Monday, November 22, 2010
Pratiques mises en oeuvre dans le secteur de la télévision payante
Autorité de la concurrence, Décision du 16 novembre 2010
Sunday, November 21, 2010
TRANSATLANTIC AIRLINE ALLIANCES: COMPETITIVE ISSUES AND REGULATORY APPROACHES
A report by the European Commission and the United States Department of Transportation
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Healthy competition is good environmental policy
Competition Policy and Green Growth, Report from the Nordic competition authorities.
Monday, November 15, 2010
ACTA: Negotiations Concluded
See the final version and the joint statement from all the negotiating partners of the agreement
Entwicklung des Urheberrechts in der digitalen Gesellschaft
29. November 2010, öffentliche Expertenanhörung veranstaltet von der Enquete-Kommission Internet und digitale Gesellschaft. Video und Stellungsnahmen zur Anhörung hier..
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Linksetzung, technisch unwirksame Schutzmaßnahme und Urheberrechtsverletzung
Bundesgerichtshof (BGH), Urteil des I. Zivilsenats vom 29.4.2010 - I ZR 39/08
Deins, meins, unseres. Kulturen des Urheberrechts
Vortrag von Reto Hilty auf dem Netzpolitischen Kongress der Grünen live gebloggt
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Italian Competition Authority to Investigate Sky's World Cup Sport Rights Exclusivity
Press release (in Italian only), from the Authority's website.
Tuesday, November 09, 2010
WIPO SCCR/21
Closed captioning (stream text) at the following link: http://streamtext.net/text.aspx?event=WIPO (pw: wipo4me). Final Conclusions (from KEI)
Monday, November 08, 2010
Sunday, November 07, 2010
Friday, November 05, 2010
Cameron on reviewing IP laws to make them fit for the digital age
From the speech:
"The founders of Google have said they could never have started their company in Britain.
"The founders of Google have said they could never have started their company in Britain.
The service they provide depends on taking a snapshot of all the content on the internet at any one time and they feel our copyright system is not as friendly to this sort of innovation as it is in the United States.
Over there, they have what are called ‘fair-use’ provisions, which some people believe gives companies more breathing space to create new products and services.
So I can announce today that we are reviewing our IP laws, to see if we can make them fit for the internet age."
See also the IPO's press release on the scope of the review.
See also the IPO's press release on the scope of the review.
Thursday, November 04, 2010
Tuesday, November 02, 2010
Monday, November 01, 2010
Kein wettbewerbsrechtlicher Leistungsschutz für Amateurfußballspiele
"www.hartplatzhelden.de", Urteil des I. Zivilsenats vom 28.10.2010 - I ZR 60/09 (noch nicht veröffentlicht, nur Pressemitteilung).
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Vince Cable on Competition Policy in the UK
From the Speech given to the Confederation of British Industry - 25 October 2010:
"What business does however need to know to promote growth is that there are clear, consistent rules to govern business behaviour. Which brings me on to competition policy. Competition is one of the great drivers of growth, keeping prices low for consumers, driving innovation, experimentation and investment.
"What business does however need to know to promote growth is that there are clear, consistent rules to govern business behaviour. Which brings me on to competition policy. Competition is one of the great drivers of growth, keeping prices low for consumers, driving innovation, experimentation and investment.
When I used my party conference speech to suggest the need for a more active competition policy, this was interpreted as some kind of modern Marxism. Far from it – this is a defence of capitalism, not an assault.
And the UK’s competition regime is regarded as one of the best in the world – particularly because of its independence and the transparency of decision making. And the EU regime on top of it – including the system of state aid rules that helps to prevent subsidy wars - is one of the Community’s most successful activities.
But there is scope for improvement. In particular, there are difficulties in successfully prosecuting anti-trust cases and a paucity of market investigation cases. I would also like to question whether our current system of sector-specific regulation is ideal, or could we achieve something better through cross sector regulation.
A system that is too slow imposes unacceptable costs on the regulated, and is an insufficient deterrent for would-be abusers of a dominant position. Competition Act cases have taken on average three and a half years between the investigation to a final decision. This is too slow – hardly the “efficient and timely processes” that the CBI has called for.
I also want to ask if we are making enough investigations. Our rate of three or four a year looks odd compared to 15 in France and even more in Germany.
In the New Year, the Government will consult on proposals to deliver more streamlined and consistent processes - including bringing the Competition Commission and the competition functions of the Office of Fair Trading together to form a single competition authority, which I hope will be more proactive in addressing problems."
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Friday, October 29, 2010
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Is IP Good or Evil? A Vatican's Perspective
Statement by H.E. Archbishop Silvano M. Tomasi, Permanent Representative of the Holy See to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva (from KEI)
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
IPKat Patent Limerick Competition
The winner has been announced, here. My pick:
A crafty inventor called Fred
Built an aircraft entirely from lead
When they cried "Why Fred Why?"
"You know it won't fly!"
"Not obvious for patent" he said.
A crafty inventor called Fred
Built an aircraft entirely from lead
When they cried "Why Fred Why?"
"You know it won't fly!"
"Not obvious for patent" he said.
Chris Torrero
Friday, October 22, 2010
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Google Books: Wonder or Threat in the Digital Age?
LawTech Seminars 2010, University of Trento, Law Department, Program here (in Italian). My presentation here.
Exclusions from Patentability and Exceptions and Limitations to Patentees’ Rights
L.Bently et al., Experts' Study on Exclusions from Patentable Subject Matter and Exceptions and Limitations to the Rights. The WIPO Standing Committee on the Law of Patents agreed to include a number of key substantive issues relating to patent law and practice in its future work.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Revising the Horizontal Merger Guidelines: Lessons from the E.U. and the U.S.
Richard J. Gilbert and Daniel L. Rubinfeld, here
A Single UK Competition and Markets Authority.
The Competition Commission (CC) and the competition functions of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) will possibly merge.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
OLG Düsseldorf: Zum Verhältnis der GPL zu Markenrechten - xtCommerce
OLG Düsseldorf, Urteil v. 28.09.2010, Az. I-20 U 41/09, Telemedicus und ifrOSS ausführlich zum Fall.
A Library Without Walls - A US National Digital Library?
Robert Darnton, The New York Review of Books, here.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Un signe qui identifie un site et non une marque n’est pas une contrefaçon
Tribunal de Grande Instance de Paris 3ème chambre, 2ème section Jugement du 01 octobre 2010
Place des Tendances / Promod, (Legalis.net)
Place des Tendances / Promod, (Legalis.net)
From "Radical Extremism" to "Balanced Copyright": Canadian Copyright and the Digital Agenda
Michael Geist, Introduction. From October 14th the book will be available in both paper and as a Creative Commons licenced download.
Der dritte Korb im Interesse von Bildung und Wissenschaft
NEUREGELUNG DES URHEBERRECHTS: ANLIEGEN UND DESIDERATE FÜR EINEN DRITTEN KORB (Wissenschaftsallianz) und Stellungnahme des Börsenvereins. Heise online berichtet über ein lebhaftes Fachgespräch der SPD-Bundestagsfraktion insbesondere zum formatgleichen Zweitveröffentlichungsrecht.
Friday, October 08, 2010
Thursday, October 07, 2010
Public Policy and Market Competition: How the Master Settlement Agreement Changed the Cigarette Industry
Ciliberto, Federico and Kumino , Nicolai, here.
Wednesday, October 06, 2010
Tuesday, October 05, 2010
Monday, October 04, 2010
WIPO Symposium on Intellectual Property and Competition Policy
Enforcing Antitrust Law with Reference to Intellectual Property Assets: New Developments and Perspectives, October, 25, Geneva. Program.
Sunday, October 03, 2010
IP Rights and Competition
Italian Competition Authority's 20th Anniversary Celebratory Event, Rome October 8, 2010, Program. My presentation on Google Books (in Italian).
The First Decade: Challenges Facing New Competition Agencies
William Kovacic, U.S. Federal Trade Commission, here.
JOINT STATEMENT FROM ALL THE NEGOCIATING PARTIES TO ACTA
Here. Read also ECIS' position paper on ACTA.
Friday, October 01, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
WIPO's Medium Term Strategic Plan 2010-15
Here.
Concerning the SCCR, strategies include:
Concerning the SCCR, strategies include:
– "continuing to support the work of Member States on copyright limitations and exceptions, with a particular focus on improving access for visually impaired and other persons with print disabilities, while accelerating work with respect to access for persons with other disabilities, educational institutions, libraries and archives;
– continuing to support the work of Member States on the protection of audiovisual performances and on the protection of broadcasting organizations;
– exploring the scope for discussion of new issues with important global consequences, such as orphan works or the need for increased cooperation between copyright owners and Internet intermediaries in the making available of legitimate creative content, and encouraging consideration of self-regulatory, as well as formal solutions".
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
Copyright law needs a digital-age upgrade
Pamela Samuelson, here, and by the same author et al. THE COPYRIGHT PRINCIPLES PROJECT: DIRECTIONS FOR REFORM
Derechos de retransmisión de acontecimientos futbolísticos en España
Apertura de un expediente sancionador por posibles prácticas restrictivas de la competencia, por vincular la reventa de derechos de retransmisión de acontecimientos futbolísticos a la contratación de los servicios de producción y transporte de la señal de partidos de fútbol, Comunicado de Prensa.
Competition for High Tech Employees
US JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REQUIRES SIX HIGH TECH COMPANIES TO STOP
ENTERING INTO ANTICOMPETITIVE EMPLOYEE
SOLICITATION AGREEMENTS, Press Release.
ENTERING INTO ANTICOMPETITIVE EMPLOYEE
SOLICITATION AGREEMENTS, Press Release.
Koexistenz, keine Konkurrenz: Gedruckte Bücher und E-Books ergänzen sich
Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels, hier.
Google Suggest : le directeur de la publication condamné pour diffamation
TGI de Paris, 8 septembre 2010, ici.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Gemeinsame Erklärung zum Vorhaben eines „Leistungsschutzrechts für Presseverleger“
Der Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie (BDI) zusammen mit anderen Verbänden, hier.
Fernsehmitschnitte und Urheberrechtsschranken für Bildung und Wissenschaft
Vernichtungsanordnung als vorauseilender Gehorsam, Aktionsbündnis Urheberrecht für Bildung und Wissenschaft e.V.
Spain Court Dismisses Telecinco Copyright Charges Vs YouTube
The Wall Street Journal, here. A quick French perspective here. Spanish press news here. Unofficial English translation of the decision here. See also E.Bonadio, D.Mula, Madrid court confirms YouTube's host status
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
WIPO Assemblies: Stevie Wonder Calls for International Action to Enhance Accessibility for Visually Impaired Persons
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Open Source and Merger Policy: Insights from the EU Oracle/Sun Decision
Simonetta Vezzoso (this blog's author), here. International Review of Intellectual Property and Competition Law (IIC), Forthcoming.
Abstract:
In Europe the merger between Oracle and Sun raised a series of substantial competition concerns, especially related to the acquisition by Oracle of MySQL, an open source business, and its impact on the database market. In the end, the acquisition was unconditionally cleared by the Commission. The open source nature of MySQL played a decisive role in the competition assessment of the merger conducted by the European competition authority according to the "significant impediment to effective competition" legal test. In this Article we will review the Commission’s decision with the specific aim of determining to what extent the open source nature of MySQL’s business model actually affected the scrutiny of Sun’s acquisition by Oracle under the relevant test. In particular, it will be questioned whether Oracle’s public announcement concerning its future behaviour on the database and related markets can be expected to duly address the concerns voiced by the Commission in the course of the merger proceedings. We will conclude that Judge Easterbrook’s much quoted conclusion that «[t]he GPL and open-source software have nothing to fear from the antitrust laws» may possibly need some qualification.
Content:
I. Introduction
II. The EU Oracle/Sun Merger Decision
1. The legal background
2. The SIEC test in the context of the Oracle/Sun case
3. The SIEC test and MySQL’s open source nature
III. The competition assessment of open source in the context of merger policy: in search of a
balanced approach
IV. Conclusion
Abstract:
In Europe the merger between Oracle and Sun raised a series of substantial competition concerns, especially related to the acquisition by Oracle of MySQL, an open source business, and its impact on the database market. In the end, the acquisition was unconditionally cleared by the Commission. The open source nature of MySQL played a decisive role in the competition assessment of the merger conducted by the European competition authority according to the "significant impediment to effective competition" legal test. In this Article we will review the Commission’s decision with the specific aim of determining to what extent the open source nature of MySQL’s business model actually affected the scrutiny of Sun’s acquisition by Oracle under the relevant test. In particular, it will be questioned whether Oracle’s public announcement concerning its future behaviour on the database and related markets can be expected to duly address the concerns voiced by the Commission in the course of the merger proceedings. We will conclude that Judge Easterbrook’s much quoted conclusion that «[t]he GPL and open-source software have nothing to fear from the antitrust laws» may possibly need some qualification.
Content:
I. Introduction
II. The EU Oracle/Sun Merger Decision
1. The legal background
2. The SIEC test in the context of the Oracle/Sun case
3. The SIEC test and MySQL’s open source nature
III. The competition assessment of open source in the context of merger policy: in search of a
balanced approach
IV. Conclusion
Thursday, September 16, 2010
EU Stakeholders Dialogue Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on access to works by people with print disabilities
Here. See also the EU Commission's press release (thanks to Antonella De Robbio for pointing it to me).
UK Joint Merger Assessment Guidelines Released
From the Press Release: "The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and Competition Commission (CC) have today for the first time published joint Merger Assessment Guidelines (...) The publication revises and expands guidance previously contained in several publications issued separately by the two Authorities after the introduction of the Enterprise Act 2002".
Competition in the Evolving Digital Marketplace
US House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Courts and Competition Policy, Thursday 9/16/2010.
Written testimonies:
Richard Feinstein (Federal Trade Commission), here.
Geoffrey A. Manne (LEWIS & CLARK LAW SCHOOL), here.
Edward J. Black (Computer and Communications Industry Association), here.
Mark Cooper (Consumer Federation of America), here
Morgan Reed (Association for Competitive Technology), here
Scott Cleland (Precursor LLC), here.
Written testimonies:
Richard Feinstein (Federal Trade Commission), here.
Geoffrey A. Manne (LEWIS & CLARK LAW SCHOOL), here.
Edward J. Black (Computer and Communications Industry Association), here.
Mark Cooper (Consumer Federation of America), here
Morgan Reed (Association for Competitive Technology), here
Scott Cleland (Precursor LLC), here.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Facilitating Access to Culture in the Digital Age - WIPO Global Meeting on Emerging Copyright Licensing Modalities
November 4 and 5, 2010 – WIPO, 34, chemin des Colombettes, Geneva. Audio recording of the meeting now available.
Monday, September 13, 2010
On establishing the leader of a cartel
General Court, T-29/05 Deltafina / Commission, in particular paras 332-336
Software licenses and first sale doctrine
US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Vernor v. Autodesk. See also this comprehensive post on Groklaw.
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
On Copyright in Headlines
Fairfax Media Publications Pty Ltd v Reed International Books Australia Pty Ltd [2010] FCA 984 (7 September 2010), Federal Court of Australia.
Monday, September 06, 2010
Rachat par la coopérative agricole Sodiaal du groupe Entremont autorisé
D'après le Communiqué "Avec l'acquisition du groupe Entremont, Sodiaal deviendra le numéro 2 sur le marché de la collecte de lait en France, derrière le groupe Lactalis. Les fournisseurs auxquels cette coopérative fera face sur ce marché seront cependant ses propres adhérents et l'Autorité a rappelé que ce contexte assurait un équilibre des relations entre vendeurs et acheteur, les éleveurs bénéficiant de leur position de sociétaires et de la sécurisation de leurs débouchés."
Friday, September 03, 2010
Price fixing in the air transportation industry
From the US Department of Justice Press Release: "Polar Air Cargo LLC has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $17.4 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to fix prices in the air transportation industry".
Advocate General Ján Mazák on (the absence of) margin squeeze
Opinion, Case C-52/09, Konkurrensverket v TeliaSonera AB.
Thursday, September 02, 2010
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
Internet Archive: Over 1 Million Digital Books Available to the Print-Disabled
Those books are available for free, in a format called DAISY, either open or protected. Open DAISYs can be read by anyone in the world on many different devices. Protected DAISYs can only be opened using a key issued by the Library of Congress NLS program.
Netzneutralität aus deutscher Sicht: "Wettbewerb ist Garant für Netzneutralität"
Matthias Kurth, Präsident der Bundesnetzagentur, hier.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Friday, August 20, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Post Oracle-Sun Merger: OpenSolaris' fate revealed (and what about Oracle's public announcement)?
Here.
From the Oracle-Sun merger decision, para 182:
"Although, with the exception of points 1, 2 and 3 (see below paragraph 184), Oracle's
public announcement is not legally binding on Oracle, the Commission considers that
the strong specificities of open source software and the vibrant ecosystem surrounding
MySQL provide for a self-enforcing mechanism ensuring that Oracle would not have
the ability and incentives to deviate from its announced future conduct. Reputation and
trust is of utmost importance for the sponsor of an open source project which depends
on contributions by a large ecosystem of users, developers and customers. After the
merger Oracle will become the sponsor of a number of significant open source projects
of Sun, including Java, MySQL and OpenSolaris, and will as such need to gain and
retain the trust from the open source community. In this respect, it can be expected that
all of the public pledges made by Oracle to reassure MySQL users, developers and
storage engine vendors will be subject to close scrutiny from the open source
community."
Was the EU Commission somehow slightly too optimistic?
From the Oracle-Sun merger decision, para 182:
"Although, with the exception of points 1, 2 and 3 (see below paragraph 184), Oracle's
public announcement is not legally binding on Oracle, the Commission considers that
the strong specificities of open source software and the vibrant ecosystem surrounding
MySQL provide for a self-enforcing mechanism ensuring that Oracle would not have
the ability and incentives to deviate from its announced future conduct. Reputation and
trust is of utmost importance for the sponsor of an open source project which depends
on contributions by a large ecosystem of users, developers and customers. After the
merger Oracle will become the sponsor of a number of significant open source projects
of Sun, including Java, MySQL and OpenSolaris, and will as such need to gain and
retain the trust from the open source community. In this respect, it can be expected that
all of the public pledges made by Oracle to reassure MySQL users, developers and
storage engine vendors will be subject to close scrutiny from the open source
community."
Was the EU Commission somehow slightly too optimistic?
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Online markets: discussion paper
A report for the Office of Fair Trading, Phillipa Marks, Stephen Adshead and Brian Williamson of Plum Consulting, Yali Sassoon of Keplar LLP and Ian Jewitt
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Spiegel: Explosion des Wissens
Access to Knowledge in Africa: The Role of Copyright
C Armstrong, J De Beer, D Kawooya, A Prabhala, T Schonwetter, here.
Thursday, August 05, 2010
On incentives to engage in designing around patents and standards for triggering a summary contempt proceeding
FTC Amicus Brief in U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Matter of TiVo, Inc., vs. EchoStar Corporation (Commissioners William E. Kovacic and Edith Ramirez dissenting)
Wednesday, August 04, 2010
Tuesday, August 03, 2010
Voluntary Competition Compliance Code launched in Pakistan
Downloadable from the Competition Commission's website.
Monday, August 02, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Librarian of Congress: New DMCA Rules on Anti-Circumvention Exceptions
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Non-Price Considerations in Merger Policy
Some very inspiring insights by FTC Commissioner J. Thomas Rosch, "The Next Challenges for Antitrust Economists." See also D.S. Tucker, "Seventeen Years Later: Thoughts on Revising the Horizontal Merger Guidelines"
Friday, July 23, 2010
Technology and competition, Contributions in honour of Hanns Ullrich
Technology and competition - Technologie et concurrence. Contributions in honour of / Mélanges en l'honneur de Hanns Ullrich - Laurence Boy, Reto M. Hilty, Josef Drexl, Christine Godt, , Bernard Remiche, Editeur : Larcier, ISBN : 978-2-8044-3521-9, 746 pages
My book review (to be published in Revue Internationale de Droit Economique, 2010/2).
"On ne doute pas que les lecteurs découvriront avec beaucoup de plaisir et d’intérêt le liber amicorum Technology and Competition – Technologie et concurrence, dédié avec admiration et affection à Hanns Ullrich, rédacteur en chef de cette revue, Professeur au Collège d’Europe, Professeur émérite à l’Université de Munich et à l’Institut Européen de Florence, par des amis, des collègues et des anciens élèves à l’occasion de son 70ème anniversaire. Apparu sous la direction de Josef Drexl, Reto M. Hilty, Laurence Boy, Christine Godt et Bernard Remiche, cet ouvrage riche et passionnant rend un hommage sincère à cet éminent juriste au rayonnement européen et plus vaste encore.
Au cœur de la réflexion scientifique de Hanns Ullrich figurent la promotion du progrès technologique et la sauvegarde de la libre concurrence, deux enjeux juridiques et économiques majeurs annoncés par le titre même des Mélanges qui viennent de lui être offerts. Généralement, c’est le système de propriété intellectuelle, et plus particulièrement de propriété industrielle, qui est censé promouvoir le progrès technologique. La tâche de protéger le jeux de la concurrence dans toutes ces dimensions revient en revanche au droit de la concurrence. Toutefois, comme l’a rappelé dernièrement Hanns Ullrich dans les pages de cette revue, les deux corps de droit sont loin d’être parfaitement indépendants l’un de l’autre. Bien au contraire, l’octroi de droits exclusifs de propriété intellectuelle se doit d’être reconnu et éclairé avant tout par son intégration dans l’ordre concurrentiel de marché. Il n’est donc pas surprenant que le droit de la concurrence soit régulièrement appelé au secours, dans le but de corriger une insuffisance éventuelle du fonctionnement du système de protection de la propriété intellectuelle, surtout de « surprotection » allégée. Cependant c’est avant tout en formulant des limites intrinsèques à la protection qui soient efficaces et appropriés que le système de propriété intellectuelle est censé assurer sa fonctionnalité et songer à son acceptation.
De toute évidence, la tâche qui revient au droit de la propriété intellectuelle n’est pas facile à accomplir, comme en témoignent plusieurs des contributions rassemblées dans la première partie de l’ouvrage, intitulée «Trop de protection de la propriété intellectuelle?». Pour ce qui est par exemple du droit des brevets, face à un élargissement excessif de la définition d’invention brevetable, on aurait délaissé l’intérêt général au maintien du domaine public du savoir, c'est-à-dire de la source principale de nouvelles connaissances protégeables et non protégeables. Il en serait pas moins inquiétant pour les critères d’exception à la protection, trop souvent conçus d’une façon insuffisante et interprétés trop rigidement pour pouvoir offrir un remède efficace aux risques de « surprotection ». Par ailleurs, ainsi que la jurisprudence communautaire en matière de droit des marques l’a maintes fois accompli en s’appuyant sur le concept de « concurrence non faussée », dans plusieurs cas il suffirait probablement d’interpréter et d’appliquer le droit de la propriété intellectuelle dans une véritable perspective de libre concurrence. Mais il est aussi indéniable que depuis quelques années, comme soulignent plusieurs contributions, les technologies et de leurs besoins de protection changent plus rapidement que dans le passé et qu’il y a eu une transformation non négligeable des modes d’exploitation des droits de la propriété intellectuelles, il suffit de penser à la commercialisation de l’invention en tant que telle et à la exploitation sous forme immatérielle des œuvres protégés, par exemple les programmes d’ordinateurs. En outre, des nouveaux modèles économiques d’innovation ont émergé, voir par exemple le mouvement open source dans l’industrie de l’informatique. Par conséquent, le législateur pourrait être appelé à corriger les déficits systématiques de protection par modification de la réglementation-cadre avec plus de fréquence, mais aussi peut-être moins d’assurance, qu’auparavant.
Les contributions de la deuxième partie, intitulée « Protéger la concurrence », s’accordent pour souligner que le droit de la concurrence non plus n’est épargné par profondes mutations et tensions. D’une part, on assiste à une convergence assez poussée entre régimes nationaux de concurrence au sein de la Communauté Européenne, même si des différences, parfois « regrettables », résistent, par exemple le maintien, si ce n’est accentuation, du caractère politique du contrôle des opérations de concentration en France. De l’autre, on peut douter que l’approche dite « plus économique » du droit de la concurrence, affichée depuis plus d’une décennie par la Commission européenne, ait véritablement amené à une analyse des pratiques restrictives plus cohérente, rigoureuse et efficace. Ce qui est évident, en revanche, c’est que la nouvelle approche a servi parfois à légitimer une démarche « pro-active » de politique industrielle en vue d’objectifs préétablis. Or, il n’est pas surprenant de remarquer que parmi les amis et collègues de Hanns Ullrich plusieurs seraient favorables à une renaissance du concept de la « liberté de concurrence », si cher à la doctrine économique dynamique allemande et à l’école autrichienne.
La rencontre annoncée entre droit de la propriété intellectuelle et droit de la concurrence a enfin lieu dans la troisième partie de l’ouvrage (« Propriété intellectuelle et droit de la concurrence »). Traditionnellement, la politique communautaire de la concurrence s’est beaucoup intéressée aux pratiques d’exploitation par contrat des droits de propriété intellectuelle. Mais c’est surtout l’analyse de l’exercice unilatéral de ces droits au service de la position dominante, notamment pour la défendre ou pour la renforcer, en particulier par des pratiques d’éviction du marché, qui est très controversée de nos jours. Relativement sous-développée au contraire est l’analyse des enjeux que pose la propriété intellectuelle au contrôle des opérations de concentration. Les contributions réunies dans cette partie de l’ouvrage, s’attachant donc directement au rapport entre droit de la propriété intellectuelles et droit de la concurrence, offrent des éclairages très utiles sur des questions clés, à la fois juridiques et économiques. Or, il se peut que sur ces thèmes les insuffisances de l’approche économique actuelle, enracinée comme elle l’est dans la pensée économique néoclassique, se fassent davantage ressentir, comme on le montre très justement dans l’étude dédié aux restrictions au commerce parallèle des produits pharmaceutiques.
Le miroir scientifique de Hanns Ullrich qui sont ces Mélanges, n’auraient pas pu s’achever sans une partie consacrée au « Droit International », autre thème sur lequel s’est penché ce savant aux talents et aux intérêts multiples. La « protéiforme » mondialisation des pratiques commerciales, comme le savent très bien les lecteurs de cette revue, présente des enjeux aussi difficiles que cruciaux. Les contributions ici regroupées, tout en témoignant de cette complexité, invitent à se ressourcer à la dimension intimement éthique de toute réflexion juridique engagée, ce qui n’est pas le moindre mérite de l’ouvrage".
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Copyright law's impact on teaching and research in the digital age: a survey from the UK
Driving UK Research – Is copyright a help or a hindrance?, a new report from the research community, compiled by the British Library
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
Changes in Competition Policy over the Last Two Decades, 2010
20th anniversary of the Polish Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, an impressive work.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Settlement In DRAM Case
From the Maryland Attorney General press release: “The settlement provides restitution for consumers and state and local government agencies who paid more for computers and other electronic devices because of the price-fixing scheme.”
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Viacom v Google on the Interpretation of DMCA "safe harbor" provision
Here. As the U.S. District Judge Louis Stanton put it, "the critical question is whether the statutory phrases “actual knowledge that the material or an activity using the material on the system or network is infringing,” and “facts or circumstances from which infringing activity is apparent” in § 512(c)(1)(A)(i) and (ii) mean a general awareness that there
are infringements (here, claimed to be widespread and common), or rather mean actual or constructive knowledge of specific and identifiable infringements of individual items".
According to the judge, "if a service provider knows (from notice from the owner, or a “red flag”) of specific instances of infringement, the provider must promptly remove the infringing material. If not, the burden is on the owner to identify the infringement. General knowledge that infringement is “ubiquitous” does not impose a duty on the service provider to monitor or search its service for infringements."
are infringements (here, claimed to be widespread and common), or rather mean actual or constructive knowledge of specific and identifiable infringements of individual items".
According to the judge, "if a service provider knows (from notice from the owner, or a “red flag”) of specific instances of infringement, the provider must promptly remove the infringing material. If not, the burden is on the owner to identify the infringement. General knowledge that infringement is “ubiquitous” does not impose a duty on the service provider to monitor or search its service for infringements."
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Competition and agriculture: potential competition concerns with respect to the breeding and commercialisation of sunflower seeds and sunflower seed treatment products in Europe?
The European Commission opens an in-depth investigation under the EU Merger Regulation into the proposed acquisition of the global sunflower seed business of US company Monsanto by Syngenta of Switzerland.
Monday, June 21, 2010
WIPO SSCR/20: More on Limitations and Exceptions
WIPO's Second Analytical Document on Limitations and Exceptions. See US' Draft Consensus Instrument on needs of persons with print disabilities. See also EU's Draft Joint Recommendation concerning the improved access to works protected by copyright for persons with a print disability.
US' declaration at SSCR/20: need to keep an holistic approach on L&E; need to move forward swiftly. US' draft consensus instrument as initial step.
In the meanwhile, the US distributed a Background Paper and FAQs (submitted as an information document) on the proposed consensus instrument.
See a comparison of the four proposals presently being discussed (limited to aspects concerning persons with disabilities, the "African Proposal" covers further matters). The wording of the Conclusions was so controversial, that no agreement could be reached. As the WIPO bravely puts it, "(D)uring a late night discussion, agreed language for final conclusions proved elusive. Member states had divergent views on the wording for future work on the scope of an international instrument relating to exceptions and limitations, and on whether and when informal consultations should take place on the protection of broadcasting organizations. Discussion on all these issues will continue at the next session of the SCCR from November 8 to 12, 2010."
US' declaration at SSCR/20: need to keep an holistic approach on L&E; need to move forward swiftly. US' draft consensus instrument as initial step.
In the meanwhile, the US distributed a Background Paper and FAQs (submitted as an information document) on the proposed consensus instrument.
See a comparison of the four proposals presently being discussed (limited to aspects concerning persons with disabilities, the "African Proposal" covers further matters). The wording of the Conclusions was so controversial, that no agreement could be reached. As the WIPO bravely puts it, "(D)uring a late night discussion, agreed language for final conclusions proved elusive. Member states had divergent views on the wording for future work on the scope of an international instrument relating to exceptions and limitations, and on whether and when informal consultations should take place on the protection of broadcasting organizations. Discussion on all these issues will continue at the next session of the SCCR from November 8 to 12, 2010."
Berliner Rede zum Urheberrecht
Saturday, June 19, 2010
How the Federal Trade Commission Works to Promote Competition and Benefit Consumers in a Dynamic Economy
Prepared Statement of the Federal Trade Commission before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights
Friday, June 18, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
UNESCO on Fighting Piracy with Non-Legislative Measures
PIRACY: CURRENT TRENDS AND NON-LEGISLATIVE MEASURES TO
COUNTERACT IT, Luis Villarroel (Corporacion Innovarte).
COUNTERACT IT, Luis Villarroel (Corporacion Innovarte).
South Africa: Beyond Competition on the Pitch
"Unleashing Rivalry” 10 Years of enforcement by the South African competition authorities (1999-2009)
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Recent Developments in EU Merger Control
Here, Nadia Calviño ( Deputy Director General DG Competition, European Commission)
Monday, June 14, 2010
More on Behavioral Antitrust
Behavioral Antitrust and Merger Control, G. J. Werden, L.Froeb, M.Shor.
EGEDA: tarifas abusivas en concepto del derecho exclusivo de autorizar la comunicación pública?
La Dirección de Investigación de la Comisión Nacional de la Competencia (CNC), ha acordado la apertura de un expediente sancionador.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Wednesday, June 09, 2010
Three-Strike in practice
UK Ofcom, Online Infringement of Copyright and the Digital Economy Act 2010: Draft Initial Obligations Code
Proposed Horizontal Merger Guidelines: "Some" Economists' Comment
Tuesday, June 08, 2010
Monday, June 07, 2010
Friday, June 04, 2010
Swedish Competition Authority: Ex-Post Agency Effectiveness Evaluation
Dan Sjöblom and Arvid Fredenberg. See also London Economics' Evaluation of OFT Competition Advocacy
Thursday, June 03, 2010
Trento's "Festival of Economics"
This year's topic: "Information, Choices and Development".
My personal choice from the extremely rich programme: M. Boldrin and D.K.Levine,
Wednesday, June 02, 2010
Remedies in the EU Microsoft Case
A CRITICAL APPRAISAL OF REMEDIES IN THE E.U. MICROSOFT CASES, Nicholas Economides, Ioannis Lianos.
Tuesday, June 01, 2010
WIPO SCCR/19: the draft report is out
Here. Looking ahead for SCCR/20. Read also Key's post on WIPO SCCR open ended consultation on the treaty for the blind
Reflecting on the best antitrust regime: a view from the US
Rewriting History: Antitrust Not As We Know It . . . Yet, J. Thomas Rosch
Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Apple's App Store and GPL
The Free Software Foundation was alleging non-compliance with sec. 6 GPL v.2. Apple reacted by removing the product from its store.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Revised competition rules for motor vehicle distribution and repair in the EU
Commission Regulation (EU) 461/2010 on the application of Article 101(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to categories of vertical agreements and concerted practices in the motor vehicle sector. See also the press release.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
-
Panel, Programme here , Video here .
-
LG Frankfurt am Main, 2-06 O 172/09 (verkündet am 13.05.2009). Lesenswertes aus der Begründung (meine Hervorhebungen): "Vorstellbare ...
-
VentureBeat, here .
-
IPOS, here . Circular 3/18 here .
-
FTC Hearings, Video here .
-
M. Sheehan, here .