Poland

Czech Republic, Enforcement, Enlargement, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Memorandum of Understanding, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Rule of Law, Slovakia, Ukraine

(University of Amsterdam) and (State University of Trade and Economics and Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition)/ /Leave a comment

In April 2023, a Memorandum was signed between the competition authorities of eight Member States (Poland, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovakia) and the competition authorities of the newest EU candidate countries Moldova and Ukraine for regional cooperation in the field of competition policy. The main objective of this initiative was to promote…

Competition Law 2022, Poland

, (Centre for Antitrust and Regulatory Studies, Faculty of Management, University of Warsaw)/ /Leave a comment

In 2022, the activities of the Polish Competition Authority (Urząd Ochrony Konkurencji i Konsumentów, hereinafter: UOKIK), and thus the developments in competition law in Poland, were affected by the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the war in Ukraine and the following energy crisis. Moving ahead with the times, the UOKIK undertook various…

Abuse of dominance, Competition law, Data protection, European Union, Facebook, Germany, Poland, Privacy, United Kingdom

(University of Strathclyde)/ /Leave a comment

In the wake of the recent hearing of the CJEU in the German Facebook case, this post assesses two common views on the integration of competition law and privacy policy, providing a general overview of the debate we are currently facing and reflecting on its apparent future.   How privacy is relevant for competition law?…

Competition Law 2021, Poland

, , (Centre for Antitrust and Regulatory Studies, Faculty of Management, University of Warsaw)/ /Leave a comment

Central-Eastern European countries such as Poland may serve as an interesting point of reference for generally studying major trends in competition law and policy and, more specifically, in post-transformation countries. Their experience may reveal characteristics not present in the case of Western European EU Member States. Moreover, they face specific challenges linked to the way…

Complaint, ECN, General Court of the European Union, Poland, Rule of Law

(Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP)/ /Leave a comment

On 9 February 2022, the General Court handed down its judgment in the offbeat case Sped-Pro (T-791/19). Notably, the General Court ruled that before rejecting a complaint on the grounds that the competition authority of a Member State is “better placed”, the Commission must examine, in a concrete and precise manner, the indications provided by…

Criminal sanctions, Individual Sanction, Poland

(Eversheds Sutherland)/ /Leave a comment

2021 – the year of first decisions – the law, the practice, and the facts The law The possibility to impose financial fines on individuals in case of undertaking anti-competitive agreements by companies was introduced into the Polish competition law in 2015. It is a responsibility of a subsidiary nature  – firstly, an undertaking must…

Media, Merger control, Poland

(Kozminski University)/ /Leave a comment

In February 2021, the Polish Competition Authority (Prezes Urzędu Ochrony Konkurencji i Konsumentów, UOKiK) cleared the media merger between Polska Press sp. z o.o. and PKN Orlen S.A. The Polish Commissioner for Civil Rights Protection had concerns about the impact of the concentration on media plurality. He appealed with the Competition Division of the Regional…

Europe, Poland, Regulation, Telecommunications, Trade between Member States

, (VVGB Advocaten/Avocats)/ /Leave a comment

Starting in 2016, the EU set out the shift to high-capacity 5G networks with the adoption of the “5G for Europe Action Plan”.[1]  These days, the buildout of the 5G network throughout Europe is starting.  Slovenia,[2] the Czech Republic,[3] Slovakia,[4] Portugal,[5] and Sweden[6] are among the first Member States to commence the 5G spectrum auctions…

Foreign direct investment, Merger control, National competition authorities (NCAs), Poland

(University of Macau)/ /Leave a comment

EU FDI Screening Regulation: separating security and competition concerns Regulation 2019/452 establishing a framework for the screening of foreign direct investments into the Union (EU FDI Screening Regulation) was adopted on 19 March 2019 and will enter into force on 11 October 2020. Its adoption was prompted by the concerns of various stakeholders alleging the…

Antitrust, Cartels, Competition, Poland

(WKB Wierciński, Kwieciński, Baehr, Poland)/ /Leave a comment

The Polish competition authority applies the principle of in dubio pro reo in the case concerning a cartel on the domestic certification market (and refuses to use lie detecting devices) On 29 December 2017, the Polish competition authority – the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (the “OCCP President”) – penalised a…