EU Competition Chief: Screw Around With Standards Essential Patents and You’ll Be Sorry

Tech companies plotting to use standards essential patents to bolster their market power best think twice before doing so.
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Justice Department Poised to Clear Google-Motorola Deal

The U.S. Justice Department is poised to clear Google Inc.’s $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. as early as next week, according to people familiar with the matter, giving Google a powerful armory of technology patents to deploy in the smartphone wars.

EU Opens Antitrust Probe Against Samsung Over Patents

The European Commission has opened a formal investigation into technology giant Samsung Electronics to see whether it is using specially protected patents, known as “standards-essential,” to distort the market for mobile devices such as phones and tablets in Europe.

News Byte

EU to Rule on Google, Motorola Mobility Deal on February 13

European Union regulators will soon decide whether or not to clear Google’s proposed acquisition of Motorola Mobility. After suspending its review in early December to seek more information from the companies, the European Commission has begun mulling the deal anew, and set for itself a new deadline: Feb. 13. The EC’s review of the acquisition is but one of a handful. Regulators in the U.S. and China are also assessing it.

EU Could Rule on Google Antitrust in March

An update on the European Competition Commission’s investigation of Google.
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Justice Department Confirms E-Book Probe

The U.S. Justice Department confirmed Wednesday that it is conducting an antitrust investigation into the pricing of electronic books, the latest antitrust watchdog to probe whether there was improper collusion by publishers and Apple Inc. to prevent discounting.

Apple, Book Publishers Face European Antitrust Probe

Apple’s entry into the e-book business hasn’t been a huge success, but it has still registered with European antitrust regulators.
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European Commission Investigating Samsung’s Patent Claims Against Apple

Apple says the European Commission has launched an antitrust inquiry into Samsung’s alleged abuse of standards-essential patents.
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As Skype Skips Through Approvals — What’s the Deal With the Deal?

As the deal officially closes, what’s next?
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EU Clears Skype Acquisition

The European Commission has cleared the proposed acquisition of the Internet voice and video communication provider Skype by Microsoft Corp., the EU’s antitrust watchdog said Friday.

French Watchdog Warns Google

T-Orange?