A N T I T R U S T M O D E R N I Z A T I O ... - ncbfaa

R E P O R T A N D R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S 13D. Antitrust and Patents20. Joint negotiations with intellectual property owners by members of a standardsettingorganization with respect to royalties prior to the establishment of thestandard, without more, should be evaluated under the rule of reason.21. Congress should seriously consider recommendations in the Federal TradeCommission and National Academy of Sciences reports with the goal ofencouraging innovation and at the same time avoiding abuse of the patentsystem that, on balance, will likely deter innovation and unreasonablyrestrain competition. In particular:21a. Congress should seriously consider the Federal Trade Commission andNational Academy of Sciences recommendations targeted at ensuring thequality of patents.21b. Congress should ensure that the Patent and Trademark Office is adequatelyequipped to handle the burden of reviewing patent applications with duecare and attention within a reasonable time period.21c. The courts and the Patent and Trademark Office should avoid an overly laxapplication of the obviousness standard that allows patents on obvioussubject matter and thus harms competition and innovation.Chapter II: Enforcement Institutions and ProcessesA. Dual Federal Enforcement22. The Federal Trade Commission and the Antitrust Division of the Department ofJustice should develop and implement a new merger clearance agreement basedon the principles in the 2002 Clearance Agreement between the agencies, withthe goal of clearing all proposed transactions to one agency or the other withina short period of time. To this end, the appropriate congressional committeesshould encourage both antitrust agencies to reach a new agreement, and theagencies should consult with these committees in developing the new agreement.