Exchanging information with competitors can be a minefield. On 29 November 2022, the Norwegian Competition Authority (NCA) fined Norway’s four largest book publishers and a database provider a total of NOK 545 million (approximately EUR 52 million) in a unique hub-and-spoke information exchange case. This is only one of several information exchange cases being pursued…
As part of the series of posts on the main developments in Competition Law, we are honored to present for the first time in the series an overview of the developments and trends in Brazilian Competition Law and Policy. Brazil had two important landmarks in 2022: the 10th anniversary of the beginning of the validity…
When, why, and on what evidence can a competition regulator in one jurisdiction push for divestments in global deals? An increasingly active UK Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) has been making its presence known, not least in technology mergers. This blog post will review core questions from Meta/Giphy relevant to advising on UK merger clearance…
“All animals are equal but some are more equal than others” (George Orwell, ‘Animal Farm’) On 28 November 2022, the Council of the European Union gave its final approval to the new EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation 2022/2560 (the FSR). The regulation addresses distortions created by subsidies that are granted by non-EU countries to companies operating…
A year of establishing crucial goals and flourishing development The previous year was flourishing and fruitful for the development of competition law in Kazakhstan. According to the annual report of the Agency for the Protection and Development of Competition of the Republic of Kazakhstan (the “Agency”) on the state of competition and measures to limit…
Factual background Just before 2022 ended the Commission sent a statement of objections to Meta regarding the potential abusive behaviour of Facebook. According to the statement of objections, Facebook may be engaging in (i) abusive tying practices with regard to Facebook Marketplace as users (i.e. consumers) that log into Facebook and are automatically also offered…
The year 2022 was an eventful year both for the Icelandic Competition Authority (“ICA”) and Icelandic Courts regarding competition enforcement and merger control. Iceland is a member of the EEA Agreement and Icelandic competition law therefore mainly mirrors EU competition law. Over the year several high-profile merger cases were amicably resolved following rigorous substantive assessments…
Last November, on the 10th anniversary of the Brazilian Competition Act (Law No. 12,529/2012, or BCA), a long-expected regulation aiming at incentivizing actions for antitrust damages was enacted in Brazil (the so-called “Brazilian Private Enforcement Package” – BPEP, or Law No. 14,470/2022). Formerly proposed before the Brazilian Senate in 2016 (Senate Bill 283/2016) and inspired…
Thank you for another wonderful and eventful year in competition law and policy. In 2022, the ten most read blogposts were: Shamsher Kataria v. Honda Siel Cars India Ltd. – Great End, but Means? by Ayushi Singhal (West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences) What to consider restrictive by object? by Christian Bergqvist (University of…
By now the issues surrounding the Super League need no further introduction. On the one hand, there are monopolists that potentially abuse their dominant position, whereas, on the other hand, there is a controversial collective of clubs, seeking to change or expand Europe’s current football offering. Consequently, the ECJ’s ruling may shape Europe’s sports sector…
