The following is a selection of some important developments in German competition law and policy in 2024. It covers the latest legislative changes for hospital mergers, cases under special rules for digital gatekeepers, abuse of dominance, merger control, the sector inquiry into charging stations for e-vehicles, antitrust (cartels, vertical price fixing and horizontal cooperation) and…
A cooperative organization which is composed of several other associations of undertakings and individual companies can be considered, at the same time, an undertaking and an association of undertakings for the purpose of applying Article 101 TFEU to the anticompetitive conduct of such an organization. It can be fined by taking into account its own…
The new European Commission (the “Commission”) has an ambitious mandate, with economic growth and competitiveness at its heart. On 29 January 2025, the Commission published a Communication entitled “A Competitiveness Compass for the EU” (“Compass”) to guide its work for the next five years. The Compass outlines a strategic framework aimed at enhancing the competitiveness…
In Denmark, the Danish Competition Council is the principal enforcer of competition law, with the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority acting as the day-to-day caretaker and rendering decisions in (minor) cases. Decisions made by either the Competition and Consumer Authority or the Competition Council may be appealed to the Danish Competition Appeals Board or the…
The power to conduct unannounced on-site inspections, commonly known as dawn raids, remains one of the most effective tools available to competition authorities in detecting anti-competitive practices. However, the digital transformation of business operations has introduced new complexities to these on-site inspections, particularly regarding the handling and preservation of electronic evidence. Recent decisions by the…
The ECN+ Directive had to be transposed into the national laws by 4 February 2021. Only five Member States (Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, Sweden, and the Netherlands) adopted their national implementing measures in time. On the date of this blog-post, Estonia remains as the only Member State that has not yet transposed the ECN+ Directive (see…
Introduction With 2024 now in hindsight, it is time to reflect on the developments in the Polish competition law landscape over the past year. It can be summarized as a continuation of activities of the Polish Competition Authority – President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK), based on previously developed frameworks, taking…
In June 2024, amendments to the Canadian Competition Act (Act) garnered significant attention (and often, criticism) from both business and legal communities in Canada for the introduction of new “greenwashing” provisions. The new provisions explicitly require businesses to substantiate claims made to Canadian consumers relating to the benefits of the business, business activities, products and/or…
A regulatory dialogue entails at least two parties exchanging their views to reach a conclusion on a common topic. That’s what first comes to mind, at least. Well, the European Commission (EC)’s idea of such a dialogue differs greatly from that. Exhibit A: the EC’s publication of its preliminary findings on the two ongoing cases…
For Korea, 2024 was a tumultuous year, even setting aside the president’s unexpected self-coup and martial law incident (luckily, short-lived as a mere midwinter night’s dream). Discussions around platform regulation were more intense than ever, and urgent debates emerged regarding the role of competition law and policy in the AI sector (which seems to be…
