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News Analysis

Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 7, 194–195 (1 March 2008) | doi:10.1038/nrd2548

Patent Watch

European Commission launches patent inquiry On 16 January, the European Commission (EC) announced that it had launched a competition law inquiry into the pharmaceutical sector in Europe. The investigation will ask two specific questions: first, whether company agreements — such as settlements in patent disputes — infringe the EC's prohibition on restrictive business practices.