In what it referred to as an “extraordinary step,” on September 10, 2020, the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (“Division”) issued a letter supplementing and updating a 2015 business review letter addressing the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers’ (“IEEE”) patent policy. The update reinforces the Division’s view that: (1) holders of standard essential patents (“SEPs”) have the same right to seek injunctive relief as other patent holders; (2) reasonable royalties on SEPs can be determined “in a variety of ways,” and that the Division does not agree with a standard setting organization (“SSO”) mandating that royalty rates be based on the value of components or the smallest salable patent practicing unit (“SSPPU”), as contrasted with the value of end products; and (3) SEP policies should “encourage good-faith bilateral licensing negotiations,” without advantaging licensees over licensors.