Antitrust Law Blog

Federal Circuit Holds That Patent Pools Without Anticompetitive Effects Are Lawful In U.S. Philips Corp. v. International Trade Commission.

On September 21, 2005, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed a ruling of the International Trade Commission ("ITC") which had found that U.S. Philips Corp. ("Philips") had committed "per se" patent misuse by "tying" the license of "essential" compact disk patents to the license of "nonessential" patents in a package licensing pool. The ITC found misuse both under a "per se" standard, and under the rule of reason.

In a case concerning competition between would-be entrants to a generic drug market and competition between generic pharmaceutical firms and a patentee, the Eleventh Circuit held that a patentee's infringement action is immune from antitrust challenge, but the same patentee's settlement of infringement proceedings with a third party may give rise to liability under Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act. Andrx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. v. Elan Corp., PLC, 11th Cir., No. 03-13605, 8/29/05.

On September 22, 2005, Ms. Neelie Kroes, the European Union's Competition Commissioner, gave a speech at the Harvard Club, New York, on enhancing actions for damages for breach of competition rules in Europe.

On September 16, 2005, the Third Circuit affirmed a district court's dismissal of a plaintiff's antitrust case on summary judgment in Harrison Aire, Inc. v. Aerostar International, Inc., Nos. 04-2904 & 04-3052 (3d Cir. Sept. 16, 2005). The three judge panel unanimously concurred with the district court that Harrison Aire had failed to show that Aerostar International had illegally established a monopoly over the market for replacement fabric for Aerostar hot air balloons or had illegally tied its repair fabric to the purchase of the balloon. The Third Circuit did, however, decide that Harrison Aire had standing to raise antitrust claims.

On September 29, 2005, Woodson & Associates, Inc., a Florida electrical contractor, was charged with conspiring to rig bids with respect to construction contracts in support of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle ("EELV") program supported by the U.S. Air Force. According to the one-count felony charge filed in the U.S. District Court in Orlando, Florida, Woodson allegedly participated in a conspiracy to suppress and eliminate competition from at least March 1998 until June 2002 by rigging a series of bids on electrical construction contracts with regard to the EELV program at Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station ("CCAFS"). Woodson agreed to plea guilty and pay a criminal penalty of $175,000.