In Pursuit of an Innovation Policy Rationale: Stakes and Limits under Article 82 TEC

Abstract

This article addresses the topical question of whether or not one may discern a clear and coherent innovation policy rationale underlying the modernisation process of Article 82 TEC in recent policy statements and practice of the European Commission. From this perspective it first briefly reviews the impact of the Article 82 Review Discussion Paper and considers what modifications could be expected from the Lisbon Reform Treaty if it were to enter into force. In a second step the article gives an appraisal of the stakes posed for the IP–competition debate in Europe by recent cases, such as inter alia Microsoft, Rambus, Qualcomm and AstraZeneca. In so–doing it goes in search of the stakes and limitations of the Article 82 TEC remedy. The concluding part tries to identify a new course of action aspiring to combine dynamic competition and innovation in furtherance of the Lisbon Strategy.