US Weighs in on Disney’s Patent-Antitrust Case With InterDigital

Judges shouldn’t presume patents convey monopoly power or treat patent enforcement as anticompetitive, the US government told a Delaware federal court hearing a Walt Disney Co. unit’s antitrust lawsuit over video-compression patents.

The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division filed a statement of interest Monday in Disney Enterprises Inc.’s suit against InterDigital Inc. in the US District Court for the District of Delaware, advising Judge Maryellen Noreika on how antitrust principles should apply in disputes involving patented technology and standards-setting.

The government said it isn’t taking a position on how Noreika should rule on InterDigital’s pending motion to dismiss or stay the ...