The European Commission has made it in time to designate the economic operators which will be the targets of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). On the 6th of September, the EC issued a press release detailing the different actions it had endeavoured since seven different undertakings had notified their potential status as gatekeepers on 4…

We are happy to inform you that the latest issue of the journal is now available and includes the following contributions: Michael J. Frese, Big Data Requests: The Commission’s Powers to Collect Documents in Investigations Under Articles 101 and 102 TFEU Access to company documents is critical for European Commission (‘Commission’) investigations, but complying with…

The Indian merger control framework is governed by the Competition Act, 2002 (Act) and The Competition Commission of India (Procedure in regard to the transaction of business relating to combinations) Regulations, 2011 (Combination Regulations). To re-align with evolving regulatory needs and streamline processes, Combination Regulations have been reformed periodically. Earlier this year, the Competition (Amendment)…

Introduction In the latest Judgement by the German Federal Court of Justice (FCJ) regarding Section 33g of the Act against Restraints of Competition (“ARC”) in BGH, Urt. v. 4.4.2023, KZR 20/21 – Vertriebskooperation im Schienenpersonennahverkehr (“Judgement”), which was added by the 9th Amendment of the ARC in 2017 and revised by the 10th Amendment of…

Many competition authorities would have given up on excessive pricing cases when the Competition Appeal Tribunal (the Tribunal) annulled a fine of more than £80m which the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had imposed on Pfizer and Flynn for increasing prices for Phenytoin sodium capsules by 700-2,600%. Many, but not the CMA. The UK’s…

With the recent Autotalks referral request the European Commission’s new approach to the application of Article 22 of the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR) becomes ever more a regular feature of EU merger law. Nevertheless the Commission’s assertion of extended jurisdiction under Article 22 remains unlawful, unconstitutional, and ultimately unsustainable. Even though its new policy was…

The Regional Court of Dortmund has asked the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for a preliminary ruling on the access of cartel victims to the so-called ‘assignment model’ (see here). Private enforcement of EU competition law is essentially driven by damage actions that bundle claims assigned by a multitude of victims to…

Introduction One of the biggest controversies in European football right now is the fight between UEFA, Europe’s continental football association, and the European Super League (ESL), a proposed breakaway league composed of some of the biggest clubs and commercial names in the sport; a case arising out of the dispute recently reached the European Court…

On July 14, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission, announced the withdrawal of two antitrust policy statements related to enforcement in healthcare markets: Statements of Antitrust Enforcement Policy in Health Care, published in August 1996, and Statement of Antitrust Enforcement Policy Regarding Accountable Care Organizations Participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program from October 2011. This…

Platform regulation and the functioning of ecosystems have been two elusive concepts to tackle from a neutral perspective, away from the polarised narratives advocated by different schools of thought on both sides of the Atlantic. The General Court’s rulings in both Google Shopping and Google Android are good proof of that. Against this titanic challenge,…