Background The notion of ‘undertaking in difficulty’ is a key element in State aid law because undertakings in difficulty can only received any State aid under the restrictive conditions for so-called rescue and restructuring aid. Any other form of State aid is excluded, even when competing companies that are not in difficulties can receive such…
On 28.03.2017, the Bulgarian Commission for Protection of Competition (the “Bulgarian Commission”) approved commitments by the leading Bulgarian oil companies Lukoil Bulgaria LTD; Eco Bulgaria JSC; Shell Bulgaria JSC, OMV Bulgaria LTD; NIS PETROL LTD. The ground for the initiation of the procedure concluded with the approval of commitments was the suspicion by the Bulgarian…
On June 21-23, the OECD held a roundtable on the theme of “Algorithms and Collusion,” as part of a wider work stream on competition in the digital economy. The OECD roundtable reflects a shift in the debate over the antitrust implications of big data from concerns about the potential for companies to hoard big data,…
On 18 May 2017, the Belgian Parliament transposed the EU Damages Directive (the “Directive“) into national law by way of the Act on Damage Claims for Breaches of Competition Law (the “Act“), which was published on 12 June 2017 in the Belgian Official Gazette and came into force on 22 June 2017. The Act inserts…
Complex transactions are subject to an increased level of antitrust scrutiny by competition authorities. This often results in extended waiting periods between signing and closing – it can nowadays be one year or even longer before the parties are able to implement the deal. For the acquiring company it is often important to start planning…
After almost a decade of active enforcement, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) on June 14, 2017 came out with its first ever decision finding an enterprise to be indulging in Resale Price Maintenance (RPM).[1]F/X Enterprise and Hyundai (Case No. 36 of 2014) with St. Antony’s Cars and Hyundai (Case No. 82 of 2014) http://www.cci.gov.in/sites/default/files/36%20and%2082%20of%202014.pdf…
In the European Union, Big Pharma has been operating with a target on its back for the best part of the last decade. Eight years after the conclusion of the 2008 pharmaceutical sector inquiry, it is clear that the Commission has largely been true to its stated enforcement priorities. However, the recent announcement of an…
On May 30, 2017, the Bundeskartellamt (Federal Cartel Office, „FCO“) has published guidelines on remedies in German merger control, also available in an English translation, link here. The very detailed guidelines (87 pages) provide a comprehensive and helpful overview and summary of the FCO’s standing remedies practice, as well as of related jurisprudence. The timing…
The Hong Kong Court of First Instance rejected a claim that it had jurisdiction to determine whether a trade association violated the Competition Ordinance. The court reasoned that determination of a breach of the Competition Ordinance was reserved for the Competition Tribunal. In the absence of a right of standalone private action under Hong Kong…
Summary New German threshold for high value but no/low German sales transactions to enter into force: Imminent changes to merger control will widen jurisdiction to catch (i) high value transactions worth over EUR 400 million with (ii) target substantial German activity even where (iii) the deal would previously not have been notifiable because the target’s…
