Bulgaria

(Dimitrov, Petrov & Co.)/ /Leave a comment

At the very end of 2016, the Bulgarian Supreme Administrative Court in its first-instance 3-member panel, confirmed one of the highest fines ever imposed by the Bulgarian Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) back in 2012. The decision was issued following an investigation of the distribution network for Hyundai motor vehicles in Bulgaria which resulted…

Bulgaria

, (Dimitrov, Petrov & Co.)/ /Leave a comment

After the Bulgarian Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) imposed a sanction on Siemens EOOD for abuse of superior bargaining position in May 2016, at the end of the year the regulating authority imposed a second sanction under the controversial provision introduced in 2015. The sanctioned undertaking is Kaufland Bulgaria EOOD & CO KD (Kaufland)…

Ireland, Mergers

(McCann FitzGerald)/ /Leave a comment

Are perceptions of increased pushback in Brussels and Washington on international combinations reflected in Irish enforcement?  What change (if any) does new management at the Irish agency herald, how did Ireland’s most controversial deal of the year fare in Brussels, and what important change might a remedies settlement in August 2016 signal?  Answers below!  …

China, Mergers

(Hogan Lovells, China)/ /Leave a comment

In a decision adopted on 16 December 2016 and made public on 4 January 2017, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM“) fined Japanese company Canon for failure to file its acquisition of Toshiba Medical Systems (“Toshiba Medical“) for merger control clearance under the Anti-Monopoly Law (“AML“).  This decision sends an important message to the business…

China

(Hogan Lovells, China)/ /Leave a comment

On 5 December 2016, the National Development and Reform Commission (“NDRC“) – one of the three Chinese antitrust authorities – issued its decision fining the local unit of Medtronic, a U.S.-listed medical device maker, for resale price maintenance (“RPM“).   Case summary Medtronic was found to maintain a distribution system for cardiovascular, rehabilitation therapy and…

Eurasian Economic Union

(ALRUD)/ /Leave a comment

On October 22, Astana (Kazakhstan) hosted the International Conference “Industrial Competition Advocacy in the EAEU cross-border markets”, where issues related to the antitrust regulation in the EAEU were discussed. One of the most important issues in the competition area of the EAEU development is the establishment of regulatory framework for the EAEU antitrust regulation and…

Canada, European Union

(Clifford Chance) and (Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, Canada)/ /Leave a comment

By Daniel Schwarz, Clifford Chance, and Mark Katz, Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg   Introduction With the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) having finally been signed by the EU and Canada on October 30, 2016, it’s worth exploring what it says about competition law and policy and how it may impact these issues on both…

European Commission, Mergers

(RBB Economics)/ /Leave a comment

When discussing mergers, both Commission officials and private practitioners often characterise these as a “N to N-1”.  We all regularly talk and hear about “6-to-5s”, “5-to-4s”, “4-to-3s”, “3-to-2s”, and even “2-to-1s”.  This blog discusses the growing view that within the Commission, a “4-to-3 or fewer” distinction has become a corridor-talk presumption of anti-competitive effects.  On…

Cartels, United Kingdom

(Peters & Peters Solicitors LLP) and (Peters & Peters Sollicitors LLP)/ /Leave a comment

On 1 December 2016, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) obtained a novel “disqualification undertaking” from Daniel Aston, the managing director of online poster supplier Trod Limited, whereby Mr Aston agreed not to act as a director of a UK company for five years. Trod had previously been fined £163,371 for agreeing with a…

Consumer welfare, Germany

(Heinz & Zagrosek Partner mbB, Germany)/ /Leave a comment

The second part of the blog on the FCO’s background paper on “Competition and Consumer Conduct – Conflict or Parallelism between Consumer Protection and Antitrust Law?” covers the interplay between consumer and competition protection and their legal tools in practice, including recent and potential future developments. (For the first part on the general principles please…