Monika Schnitzer Does Compulsory Licensing Work as an Effective Antitrust Tool?
Monika Schnitzer holds the Chair for Comparative Economics at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich. She has been a Visiting Professor at Harvard University, the University of California, Berkeley, Yale University, and Stanford University. Among her main research interests are the innovation and internationalization strategies of companies and obstacles caused by financial restrictions, contractual insecurities, and political risks. Her advisory roles include that of deputy chairwoman of the Commission of Experts for Research and Innovation that was established by the German government in 2007. For her academic work, she has received many awards, including the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (2005), as well as the Bavarian Order of Merit (2012).
Area of Research
Innovation and Multinational Firms
since 1996
Full Professor
Ludwig Maximilian University Munich (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München)
Department of Economics
2017
Visiting Professor
Harvard University
2013
Visiting Professor
Harvard University
2009
Visiting Professor
University of California, Berkeley
2004
Visiting Professor
Yale University
2000
Visiting Professor
Stanford University
1995-1996
Visiting Full Professor
Ludwig Maximilian University Munich (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München)
Department of Economics
1991-1995
Assistant Professor
University of Bonn (Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn)
Department of Economics
1992
Visiting Scholar
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
1992
Visiting Lecturer
Boston University
1987-1991
Teaching Assistant
University of Cologne (Universität zu Köln)
Department of Economics
1995
Habilitation in Economics
University of Bonn (Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn)
1991
PhD
University of Bonn (Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn)
1986
Diploma in Economics
University of Cologne (Universität zu Köln)
- Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities
- German Economic Association (President 2015-16)
- European Economic Association
- American Economic Association
- European Academy of Sciences and Art
Prizes
- Order of Merit of Bavaria (2012)
- Teaching Award of Bavarian Government (2011)
- Order of Merit of Federal Republic of Germany (2005)
- Academy Prize of Academy of Sciences and Humanities Northrhine-Westphalia (1996)
Innovation is very important for economic growth and, often, small start-ups are a key generator of innovation. For this, access to patents is essential for innovative start-ups. However, a few dominant companies often hold these patents in a market field and refuse to license their technology to others, as MONIKA SCHNITZER explains in this video. She has investigated whether antitrust measures, such as compulsory licensing, are an effective tool to deal with this problem. Using the 1956 consent decree as a case study, her team examined whether the compulsory licensing measures imposed on the Bell System – a monopolistic provider of telecommunications services in the United States in the 1950s – promoted follow-on innovation. Indeed, the researchers found that it worked in fields outside of telecommunications, but not so much inside Bell’s own market field. Analyzing the reasons for this, this empirical study demonstrates that compulsory licensing can be an effective antitrust remedy under certain conditions.
LT Video Publication DOI: https://doi.org/10.21036/LTPUB10528
How Antitrust Enforcement Can Spur Innovation: Bell Labs and the 1956 Consent Decree
- Martin Watzinger, Thomas A Fackler, Markus Nagler and Monika Schnitzer
- CEPR Discussion Paper No. DP11793
- Published in 2017
