The legal impact of exiting the European Union after 47 years of membership, a growing focus on digital markets, and increasingly robust enforcement by the Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) are among the defining developments in UK competition law and policy during 2020. In addition, as with many jurisdictions worldwide, the Covid-19 pandemic has had…
On 14 January 2021, the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) confirmed that participation in a bid-rigging cartel ends when the basic characteristics of the contract between the “successful” tenderer and the contracting (public) authority are determined (C-450/19 – Kilpailu- ja kuluttajavirasto, ECLI:EU:C:2021:10). This has a major impact on the limitation period, which…
On 2 February 2021, the Netherlands Authority for Competition & Markets (the ‘ACM’) published a study on sponsored internet ranking and its effects on competition and consumer welfare. Sponsored ranking means that suppliers pay extra commission for a better ranking in the search results. Many platforms use paid search engines. The ACM has investigated whether…
It is the same old story which we have heard many times before: Ryanair boss O’Leary is currently using strong words to complain about Corona subsidies granted to his competitors. His cursing is neither original nor surprising, but a variation on his favourite theme: Ryanair sees itself at a competitive disadvantage with other players that…
On 7 February 2021, the Anti-Monopoly Commission of the State Council issued the Anti-Monopoly Guidelines for the Platform Economy (the Guidelines) clarifying the application of the Anti-Monopoly Law (AML) to the potential anti-competitive practices of the online platforms. The issuance of the Guidelines sends a clear message to the online platforms that antitrust enforcement in…
The year 2020 will probably remain in everybody’s mind as a year of COVID, lock-downs, masks, and businesses trying to survive by adjusting their business models to the new reality. For the competition law professionals, this year would also be associated with various competition law developments in an attempt to simplify the life of various…
Canadian Threshold for Merger Review on the Decline The Canadian Competition Bureau has announced that, effective immediately, the Competition Act’s pre-merger notification threshold relating to transaction size will decrease to $93 million from the 2020 threshold of $96 million. This threshold requires that the target business have assets in Canada or annual revenues in or…
A February 4 conference on competition policy and the Green Deal sponsored by the European Commission’s (the Commission’s) Directorate-General for Competition (DG COMP) highlighted the divergences of opinions among antitrust officials and other stakeholders on how competition policy should support sustainability objectives. DG COMP aims to take a leading role on sustainability issues; its October-November…
With the adoption of the 10th amendment to the Act against Restraints of Competition (ARC, ‘Gesetz gegen Wettbewerbsbeschränkungen’) on 14.01.2021 by the German Parliament (’Bundestag’), the curtain will lower on an antitrust opera [previously reported by Silke Heinz here]: ‘The Abduction from (not the Seraglio) the Düsseldorf Court of Appeals’. Overture For the following,…
The digitalisation of the modern economy poses new diverse tasks for the legislator and dispute resolution bodies. It is expected that said digitalisation will affect various industries and segments of the economy. In this sense, relations pertaining to the protection of competition will also be affected by the mentioned process. Particular attention is drawn to…
