The Crossroad of Patent and Competition Law in the context of Patent Assertion Entities: A Comparative Analysis

–Srishti Suresh

Determined to supersede one another in the race for technological advancement, patent rights seem to offer a benign opportunity for an inventor, to make exclusive his invention, while offering him the discretion in fixing license fees. This form of exclusivity is purported to behave as an incentive, in allowing an inventor to recoup the cost and energy expended in making the invention, while formally according him the status of being the sole owner of that technology. However, the bailiwick of patent holders is not restricted to first hand innovators and researchers. Intermediate entities and bodies known as Patent Assertion Entities (“PAEs”), have increasingly come to possess patent rights over significant patent technologies and inventions. The leverage offered by patent rights is often abused by PAEs, by adopting various tactful strategies. This abuse of dominance has cascading effects, including but not limited to stymieing innovation and growth; it has detrimental effects on free market competition and antitrust regulation, ultimately affecting the end consumer.

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