Last week, the European Commission approved Nintendo's new licensing agreements, now compatible with current competition law. Nintendo's new agreements differ vastly from those set up in the US and Japan, and cover all of Nintendo's platforms.

　　There are no limits on how many games licensees can release, and approval from Nintendo is no longer required unless the licensee elects to use a Nintendo trademark for a game. Additionally, licensee's games do not have to be manufactured by Nintendo. Other objections that the Commission had to Nintendo's licensing arrangements have either been deleted or amended to not raise competition issues.

　　The European Commission has now determined that any infringement on EU competition law from any of Nintendo's systems has been cleared up and that this will provide for greater competition in the European market for Nintendo compatible games. This differs from Nintendo's licensing strategies in the US, where companies are limited in the number of games they can produce for Nintendo systems, must have Nintendo approval on each title, and cartridges have to be manufactured by Nintendo.

　　Nintendo was first made aware of the Commission's concerns on May 15 last year.