The Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Latvia, 1999 February 16. Regulation No. 53 (in Riga. Nr. 12, § 14) rules on agreements on joint research and development exemption from competition law agreement bans issued under the Competition Act, article 15, paragraph 1 of the fourth part of the i. General questions 1. terms used in the rules: 1. research and development: the company (the company) for the development of the necessary technological knowledge acquisition, theoretical analysis, systematic research and experimentation, including experimental production, product and process engineering inspection , the purchase of equipment and the acquisition of intellectual property rights;
1.2. use of the results-products manufacturing agreement, intellectual property transfer or licensing and agreements or arrangements for the production process requires disclosure of know-how;
1.3. the agreement process, technical and technological processes that have been developed in the research and development results;
1.4. the agreed products — goods or services that are produced or developed as a result of research and development, or which are produced using processes of the arrangement.
2. These rules shall be established between two or more companies (company) (hereinafter referred to as the company) agreement on joint research and development (hereinafter referred to as the agreement), which are exempt from competition law article 15 the prohibition laid down in the first subparagraph under article 15 of the law referred to in the second subparagraph, provided that they fulfil the requirements laid down in these provisions. Such agreements are permitted, without submitting them to the notice of the competition Council.
3. These rules apply to two or more business contracts and practices, as well as to decisions by associations of undertakings and joint research in the field of development.
4. Research and development, as well as the use of the results is a common if: 4.1 research and development is carried out in the joint working group, organization or company, jointly entrusted to a third person or is distributed among the participants of the research specialization, development or production;
4.2. the participants in the arrangement shall cooperate in the licensing of intellectual property rights or know-how transfer to third parties under this rule 1.4.
5. The participants of the related companies is: 5.1. undertakings in which the participants have decisive influence;
5.2. companies, which have a decisive influence in the participation agreement.
5.3. undertakings in which this rule 5.2. companies referred to are the decisive influence;
5.4. the company, in which the participants or these rules 5.1, 5.2 and 5.3 in these companies is a joint decisive effect.
6. the requirements of this regulation also apply to the rights and obligations agreed impose on member affiliates. Market share in associated undertakings and activities are considered to be the participants of the market shares and activities.
II. Exemption from prohibition to the arrangement of 7 prohibition is exempt agreements that provide for one or more of the following conditions: 7.1. joint research and development, as well as the joint exploitation of results;
7.2. joint exploitation of results under a pre-existing agreement between the companies concerned;
7.3. joint research and development, excluding joint exploitation of the results, so far as it is contrary to the Competition Act set out in the agreement.
8. the agreement is exempt from the prohibition on agreements, which provided for all these conditions are met: 8.1. joint research and development is being implemented within the framework of the program, which provides research and development and defined research and development objectives;
8.2. each of the participants is available for joint research and development results;
8.3. If the agreement provides only for joint research and development, each of the participants to freely and independently can use the joint research and development results and previous technological knowledge;
8.4. the joint exploitation of the results apply only to those that are protected by intellectual property rights or is a technical secret, which significantly contribute to technical or economic progress, and that results are essential to the manufacture of the products of the arrangement or agreement process;
8.5. the specialized companies involved in executing all participants supply orders.
9. the agreement is exempt from the prohibition on agreements, which the participants shall provide one or more of the following restrictions of competition: 9.1 the run time does not carry out independent research and development program for the common or similar field;
9.2. the run time does not enter into agreements with third parties for research and development for the common or similar field;
9.3. to purchase products only from the arrangement agreement members, organisations and companies or from third parties that jointly involved in production;
9.4. the agreement to manufacture products or use agreement process for other participants in the reserved areas;
9.5. to produce products or use of the arrangement agreement processes only in one or more technical fields of application, except where two or more participants in the arrangement agreement into force are competitors in the manufacture of products that can be improved or replaced by the arrangement;
9.6. within five years from the appearance of the product on the market to promote the agreement, the appearance of the product on the market for other participants in the reserved areas, through advertising in those areas or create a branch and product stocks for distribution (provided that intermediaries and consumers can purchase a smooth arrangement of products from other suppliers);
9.7. to assign to one of the participants in the exclusive rights for the product distribution agreement (provided that the participants will not disseminate the third-party products that compete with the products of the arrangement);
9.8. assign one member exclusive rights arrangement agreed in the joint delivery of the product to the company or the third party (provided that the joint undertaking or a third person will produce and disseminate the third-party products that compete with the products of the arrangement);
9.9. assign one member exclusive rights arrangement agreed in the joint delivery of the products to the company or the third party throughout the market or a specific part thereof (provided that the joint undertaking or a third person will produce and disseminate products that compete with the products of the arrangement), if intermediaries and consumers can purchase a smooth arrangement of products from other suppliers;
9.10. the participants in the arrangement shall inform each other of the experience gained in the use of results, and give other participants just license the inventions concerning products and processes agreed improvements and new uses.
10. the agreement is exempt From the prohibition on agreements, which the participants shall provide one or more of the following: 10.1. to inform about patents or not patented technical knowledge that is protected by intellectual property rights or is a trade secret and that are required to implement the relevant programmes and results;
10.2. the use of other participants received technical secrets for the purposes not connected with the implementation of the programme and the use of results;
10.3. acquire and maintain intellectual property rights on products and agreed to the arrangement process;
10.4. observe the relevant programme for technical secrecy privacy (even after the expiry of the agreement);
10.5. inform others members of the arrangement, if it is in violation of their intellectual property rights, to take action against infringers and to support the other participants of the action against the offenders, as well as to cover the portion of the expenditure concerned;
10.6. offset the investment in research and development or exploitation of the results for those participants that they were larger than the others;
10.7. split with the rest of the participants to the arrangement from third parties payment receipts;
10.8. deliver the rest of the participants to the arrangement agreement of not less than a certain quantity of products and to comply with at least the minimum stipulated quality standards.
11. the exemption from the prohibition of agreements apply to this provision 10. the obligations laid down in point also, if special circumstances they are prohibited under the Competition Act, article 15, first subparagraph.
III. Limits for exemption from the prohibition on agreements

12. If the participants are not competitors in the manufacture of products that can be improved or replaced by the products of the arrangement, the exemption from the prohibition of agreements applicable to research and development during program execution, but if the results are used together, — five years of product appearance in the market. After the expiry of the exemption from the prohibition of the arrangement applicable as long as the agreed product production with interchangeable product of the total volume of production arrangement members does not exceed 20 percent of the market share of the products concerned on the market. If the product is used for the arrangement of the ingredients in the manufacture of other products, take into account the market where the products used in the arrangement of the components, form a significant part.
13. where the participants in the arrangement have competitors in the manufacture of products that can be improved or replaced by the agreement, this provision of the products referred to in paragraph 12 time limits apply only if at the time of conclusion of the agreement for the products in the total production of the participants does not exceed 20 percent of the market share of the products concerned on the market.
14. If one of the participants, the total company, third party, more common, companies or third parties are authorized to distribute products under this agreement of the provisions, and 9.8 9.9 9.7. in (a), the exemption from the prohibition of the arrangement applies only if the product of the arrangement and the interchangeability of goods production agreement participants does not exceed 10 percent of the market share of the products concerned on the market.
IV. agreements that do not apply the exemption from the prohibition of agreements 15. Exemption from prohibition of the arrangement is not applicable to an agreement that provides for one or more of the following limits: 15.1. the participants in the arrangement will be limited independently or jointly with third parties to carry out research and development in the area, which is not related to the agreements contained in the programme, or, by agreement of the expiry of the programme, which had been included in the program, or a similar field;
15.2. the participants agreed upon the expiry of the program is restricted to challenge intellectual property rights that the participants got the during program execution;
15.3. the participants in the arrangement are limited to be produced or marketable products, the arrangement or agreement number of the process used;
15.4. the participants in the arrangement is limited to the price, pricing or discount in terms of determining if they sell products in the agreement to third parties;
15.5. the participants in the arrangement are limited in terms of consumer choice;
15.6. upon this provision referred to in paragraph 9.6. expiry of the agreement the members agreement is prohibited to launch products or active commercial activities in territories reserved for other participants;
15.7. the participants in the arrangement shall not issue licences to third parties to manufacture products of the arrangement or agreement for the use of the process, even if the results of the joint use of the participants in the arrangement do not intend, and the results are not in common use;
15.8. the agreement participants are asked: 15.8.1. without objective reason to satisfy the seller and consumer demand that work in specific areas and can sell the products of the arrangement in other areas;
15.8.2. prevent consumers and salespeople purchase agreement products from other vendors, through the intellectual property rights or otherwise.
V. notice of agreement 16. If the agreement provides for the restrictions, which are not mentioned in this provision in paragraph 9 and 10, the participants in the arrangement of the notice of the competition Council agreement. The competition Council may authorize such agreement for a certain period of time.
17. paragraph 16 of these terms in that notice must contain a reference to this provision, paragraph 16, and the complete and true information about the agreement.
18. If the competition Council after this provision in paragraph 16 the examination concerned decides that the agreement is to apply the agreement, it shall consider the communication in accordance with the order in which the notifications of pending agreement between market participants.
19. the information obtained by the competition Council in accordance with paragraph 16 of these terms is maintained as confidential and used only for the assessment of the relevant agreement.
20. The competition Council may prohibit the application of the exemption from the prohibition of agreements, if the agreement does not comply with the Competition Act, article 15 of the conditions of the second subparagraph, particularly where: agreement substantially reduces 20.1. for third parties to carry out research and development in the relevant field;
20.2. the agreement substantially restricts the access of third parties to the agreement to market the product as a special delivery structure;
20.3. the participants in the arrangement without objective reason does not use the common research and development results;
20.4. agreement not competing products on the market in question.
21. understanding the prohibition is not applicable in Latvia if the agreement affects trade between Latvia and European Union Member States and the European Union meet the Commission's requirements of the rules of the Treaty establishing the European Community, article 85 of the exemption laid down in the third subparagraph of the agreement relating to the application of prohibition agreement on joint research and development.
22. paragraph 21 of these rules in that agreement effects be assessed in Latvia, the competition Council.
 
Prime Minister v. krištopans economic Minister a. shlesers