India’s competition authority (the CCI) imposed a record-breaking fine of US$750,000 (50 million rupees) on General Electric (GE) earlier this year for failing to notify its tie-up with Alstom S.A. within the deadline required by the country’s merger control rules. The CCI is increasingly active in enforcing its merger regime. Since GE’s case, the CCI…
DG COMP has published a study by the University of East Anglia analysing the European Commission’s approach to geographic market definition in recent cases. It has reviewed ten cases from 2008-2014 where geographic market definition was a key issue. The study looked at the Commission’s geographic market analysis in terms of the methodology used and…
While higher concentration/oligopoly should not lead in itself to greater problems, the reality is that agencies may be more suspicious; extra laws may apply; and complaints might be more likely. This blog post sets out the things that companies can do to preserve their commercial freedom and freedom from investigation: Contacts with competitors One area…
The EU’s Court of Justice has ruled (in Case C-345/14 Maxima Latvija) that a clause in a property lease, between a mall owner and a supermarket ‘anchor tenant’, which gives that tenant the ‘right to approve’ the granting of leases to competing stores is not anti-competitive ‘by object’. This means that any investigating authority/court would…
