EU looks to change rules on technology transfer, patent pools
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The European Commission is looking to change the regulations around technology transfer agreements, particularly around patent licensing groups .
The Technology Transfer Block Exemption Regulation (TTBER) has been in place since 2014 but expires on 30 April 2026. A study, released today, found that there was demand to include data and data rights and the increasingly powerful patent licensing groups.
The Commission will now launch an impact assessment to examine policy options for a revision of the rules. This will be critical for the development of battery manufacturing in Europe where technology transfer is key.
“Our evaluation has shown that the current rules have proved useful for companies to assess whether their technology transfer agreements comply with EU competition rules. At the same time, the evaluation has identified several areas where the rules may need updating to reflect recent market developments and increase legal certainty. We will now reflect on how to address these issues to ensure that the rules remain fit for purpose,” said Margrethe Vestager, the outgoing Executive Vice-President in charge of competition policy
The study found that the TTBER and accompanying guidelines have been largely successful in assisting companies to self-assess the compliance of their technology transfer agreements with EU competition rules.
But it found that they could be improved in certain areas to reflect recent market developments. Some stakeholders identified practical difficulties in applying one of the two market share thresholds contained in the TTBER. These cover deals with companies with a combined market share of 20% or a single share of 30%.
Stakeholders also suggested broadening the scope of the TTBER to cover the licensing of data or data rights, which have a growing importance in the digital economy, and/or providing guidance on this issue in the Guidelines.
Some stakeholders consider that the Commission should provide guidance on the competition law assessment of licensing negotiation groups
The TTBER exempts certain categories of technology transfer agreements from the prohibition of anti-competitive agreements to strengthen research and development, the diffusion of technologies and to boost competition. It covers certain technology rights, such as patents, design rights or software copyrights, for the production of goods or services.
There is a dedicated TTBER and Guidelines review webpage.
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