Anticompetitive business practices in which a dominant firm may engage in order to maintain or increase its position in the market. These business practices by the firm, not without controversy, may be considered as “abusive or improper exploitation” of monopolistic control of a market aimed at restricting competition. The term abuse of dominant position has been explicitly incorporated in competition legislation of various countries such as Canada, the EU and Germany. In the United States, the counterpart provisions would be those dealing with monopoly and attempts to monopolize or monopolization of a market.
Source: OECD
Introduction The Supreme Court of India recently passed its judgment in the Schott Glass case[1]. The ruling comes after more than ten years when the Competition Commission of India first adjudged the matter and passed a contravention order against Schott Glass India Private Limited (‘Schott Glass’). The SC has mostly confirmed the findings of Competition…
Advocate General Kokott has delivered her Opinion in the Google Android appeal, recommending that Google’s appeal be dismissed in its entirety and that the General Court’s 2022 judgment be upheld. In that judgment, the Court confirmed all relevant aspects of DG COMP’s 2018 decision, including the finding that Google had abused the Android mobile Operating…
The proceedings against Vifor Pharma/HCI Solutions In December 2016, the Swiss Competition Commission (ComCo) fined HCl Solutions AG (HCI) around CHF 4.5 million for abuse of a dominant market position. HCI, a subsidiary of Vifor Pharma Participations AG (Vifor), operates, among other things, the “Compendium” of electronic drug information and user-specific INDEX databases (e.g. “medINDEX” for…
Introduction Big tech platforms possess characteristics that lead to entrenched structural power and a lack of competition. One notable feature is the existence of extreme economies of scale, arising from the minimal marginal costs associated with additional business users or end users. Furthermore, the services offered by these platforms exhibit strong network effects and an…
The topic of the essential facility doctrine has made unexpectedly frequent appearances in EU case law over the past few years, which continues to refine the application scope of Bronner. The recent preliminary procedure in the case of Google Android Auto will inevitably become part of this process, which may have some significant consequences in…
On 18th November 2024, the Competition Commission of India (“CCI”) made history by imposing a penalty of Indian Rupees 2.13 billion (approximately USD 25.3 million), alongside cease-and-desist directions on Meta for abusing its dominant position (In Re: Updated Terms of Service and Privacy Policy for WhatsApp users). The order was passed in relation to WhatsApp’s…
The recent Google Shopping ruling has already sparked much debate, and an earlier blog post offers a detailed overview of the judgment itself. Building on this, this contribution’s focus is to emphasize and discuss some aspects in the academic analysis, the judgment’s broader implications and outlook for further actions. It builds upon a recently published…
Introduction The decision of the ECJ of 10th of September 2024 (C-48/22 P) brings the Google Shopping saga to an end. The decision by the highest court confirms the conviction of Alphabet by the General Court (T-612/17) (see the blogpost on General Court’s decision here). The European Commission had previously imposed a record fine of…
The UK Competition and Market Authority has launched an investigation into Ticketmaster over its dynamic pricing of concert tickets. This follows widespread complaints about Ticketmaster increasing ticket prices in response to large demand for band Oasis’s reunion tour. Dynamic pricing is not a new practice. Airlines and ride-hailing companies like Uber are particularly well-known for…
Introduction Over the summer, the Commission published its long-awaited draft Article 102 Guidelines (‘draft GL’) for comments.[1] The stated intention of the Commission is to base the Guidelines on the case law of the Union Courts (§9). The stated goals of the Guidelines are to allow a vigorous and effective application of Article 102, but…
