ANALYSIS: DOJ, FTC Split on Antitrust in Patent Licensing Looms Over Trial

The chiefs of the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission usually present a united front about enforcing the antitrust laws, something both agencies are empowered to do. But the agencies currently vocally disagree over whether specific conduct should violate the antitrust laws.

In fact, the FTC is trying to prove in a bench trial that chip giant Qualcomm Inc. abused its monopoly in modem chipsets through conduct that DOJ antitrust chief Makan Delrahim has repeatedly said the Sherman Act should permit.

Patent law and antitrust law are in tension: one grants a monopoly as a reward to ...