Keywords
Summary

Keywords

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1 . Competition - Agreements, decisions and concerted practices - Agreements between undertakings - Concept - Agreements whose purpose is to put an end to litigation

( EEC Treaty, Art . 85 ( 1 ) )

2.Competition - Agreements, decisions and concerted practices - Effect on trade between Member States - Reciprocal licensing agreements relating to industrial and commercial property rights protected in several Member States

( EEC Treaty, Art . 85 ( 1 ) )

3.Competition - Agreements, decisions and concerted practices - Adverse effect on competition - Criteria of assessment - No-challenge clause in patent licensing agreement

( EEC Treaty, Art . 85 ( 1 ) )

Summary

1 . In its prohibition of certain "agreements" between undertakings, Article 85 ( 1 ) of the Treaty makes no distinction between agreements whose purpose is to put an end to litigation and those concluded with other aims in mind .

2 . A reciprocal licensing agreement relating to industrial property rights protected in several Member States of the Community is capable of affecting trade between Member States, even if the parties to the agreement are established in the same Member State .

3 . A no-challenge clause in a patent licensing agreement may, depending on the legal and economic context, restrict competition within the meaning of Article 85 ( 1 ) of the EEC Treaty . Such a clause does not, however, restrict competition when the agreement in which it is contained granted a free licence and the licensee does not, therefore, suffer the competitive disadvantage involved or when the licence was granted subject to payment of royalties but relates to a technically outdated process which the undertaking accepting the no-challenge agreement did not use .