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In 1994, Congress enacted a statute to satisfy the United States' pledge under the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPs) agreement. The new statute added liability under the patent law for an "offer to sell." Effective January 1, 1996, 35 U.S.C. §271(a) provided that "whoever without authority makes, uses, offers to sell, or sells any patented invention, within the United States infringes the patent." Congress offered no guidance as to the meaning of the phrase other than stating in §271(i) that an "offer to sell" includes only those offers "in which the sale will occur before the expiration of the term of the patent." The primary purpose behind the addition of the "offer to sell" language was to comply and harmonize with international intellectual property regimes as part of the TRIPs agreement and was not to disturb the fundamental scope of patent protection in the United States. The interpretation of the "offer to sell" language should be consistent with this purpose. From a policy perspective, the broad interpretation of the "offer to sell" language would also have the undesirable effect of deterring international companies from conducting otherwise lawful business in the United States.