Reuters<\/a> noted that these adjustments aim to provide stability and flexibility while aligning rules more closely with British economic realities.<\/p>\nIndustry Reactions<\/p>\n
Tech licensing firms including Nokia, Sisvel International, and Avanci submitted responses during consultation, according to Reuters. Industry stakeholders warned of legal uncertainty if TTBER expired without replacement.<\/p>\n
In its submission, InterDigital cautioned that not replacing TTBER would ‘risk creating legal uncertainty and increasing compliance costs for technology transfer licensing in the UK.’<\/p>\n
The company stressed that a stable exemption regime supports investment and innovation, particularly for cross-border licensing.<\/p>\n
Legal experts described the CMA’s proposal as pragmatic: it mirrors EU principles but allows for UK divergence where necessary. However, some observers warned in the CMA consultation responses that divergence could complicate cross-jurisdictional licensing deals.<\/p>\n
Why It Matters<\/p>\n
According to the CMA report, failing to renew or replace TTBER could expose agreements to challenge under Chapter I of the Competition Act 1998, leaving firms without legal certainty. A clear block exemption, by contrast, gives companies confidence to negotiate technology transfer deals without breaching competition law.<\/p>\n
The government’s adoption of a UK-specific order would also mark a symbolic regulatory shift. Reuters noted that the proposal is part of a wider post-Brexit agenda to “take back control” of competition law and reduce dependence on EU legacy rules.<\/p>\n
Challenges Ahead<\/p>\n
Despite its pragmatic approach, the CMA admitted that practical challenges remain. Determining whether three substitutable technologies exist in fast-moving sectors could be complex, and consistent interpretation across regulators and courts will be vital.<\/p>\n
Guidance documents, the CMA confirmed, will accompany the order to help businesses navigate potential disputes.<\/p>\n
The consultation period has now ended, and the CMA’s recommendation is with the Secretary of State for final consideration.<\/p>\n
If approved, the new UK-specific block exemption could come into force in April 2026, replacing TTBER and providing what the CMA describes as a ‘future-proof framework’ for technology licensing in Britain.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"KEY POINTS CMA advises scrapping EU-era TTBER as it expires in April 2026 Proposal introduces 12-year UK-specific tech…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":467460,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5226],"tags":[802,155931,748,155932,2000,299,5187,1699,4884,155933,155930,155929,16,155928,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-467459","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-brexit","8":"tag-brexit","9":"tag-brexit-competition-rules","10":"tag-britain","11":"tag-database-rights","12":"tag-eu","13":"tag-europe","14":"tag-european","15":"tag-european-union","16":"tag-great-britain","17":"tag-innovation-policy","18":"tag-tech-licensing","19":"tag-ttber","20":"tag-uk","21":"tag-uk-cma","22":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115302507808678505","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467459","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=467459"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467459\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/467460"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=467459"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=467459"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=467459"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}