The Supreme Court today issued its opinion in Illinois Tool Works Inc. v. Independent Ink, Inc., an antitrust case. The case challenges Illinois Tool Works’ practice of requiring original equipment manufacturers to purchase unpatented ink from Illinois Tool Works for use with its patented printhead system. Independent Ink alleged that this tying arrangement was per se unlawful under the Sherman Act because Illinois Tool Works had market power in the tying product, i.e., the patented printhead system. Illinois Tool Works offered no proof of that market power; rather, it relied on Supreme Court cases to argue that market power could be inferred from the patents themselves.
The district court disagreed, but the Federal Circuit reversed. It found the tying arrangement unlawful per se under the Sherman Act, relying on Supreme Court cases that established a rebuttable presumption of market power when the tying product is patented.
The Supreme Court unanimously reversed, as expected. The Court held that market power cannot be inferred from a patent alone; a plaintiff must prove defendant has market power in a relevant market. However, because Independent Ink reasonably relied on the Supreme Court’s prior opinions, the Court held that it should be given an opportunity to present such proof on remand.
Comment Preview