Memo: Antitrust: Commission market tests commitments proposed by Rambus concerning memory chips

The European Commission invited comments from interested parties on commitments offered by microchip designer Rambus to meet concerns that it may have infringed EC Treaty rules on abuse of a dominant position (Article 82) by claiming unreasonable royalties for the use of certain patents for 'Dynamic Random Access Memory' chips (DRAMS). Rambus had said it is prepared to commit to put a cap on its royalty rates for the five year duration of these commitments. The cap includes a 'Most-Favoured-Customer' clause which would ensure any future rate reductions would benefit the whole market. Interested parties can submit comments within one month from the date of publication. Following the market test, the Commission may decide to adopt a decision under Article 9 (1) of Regulation 1/2003, making the commitments legally binding on Rambus.

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