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EU Competition Law and Regulation

Selected e-articles

Abstract: The document examines challenges and innovations in telecommunications law, focusing on the European context. It highlights the importance of asymmetric regulation and ex ante identification of enterprises with substantial market power. The 2018 European Electronic Communications Code introduces pivotal changes, including co-investment agreements (Art. 76), aiming to foster cost and risk sharing among operators, benefiting smaller enterprises. Such agreements respond to the need for sustainable competition. Art. 72 introduces a new obligation: access to civil engineering infrastructures. This obligation can extend beyond the traditional market if necessary and proportionate to achieve competition and unhindered access objectives. The document emphasizes the regulations' efforts to balance the interests of economic operators and consumers, promoting competition and innovation in the telecommunications sector.

Abstract: The 2022 Guidelines of the European Commission on the application of EU competition law to collective agreements regarding the working conditions of solo self-employed persons apparently introduced a fresh approach towards collective agreements in a gig economy era. The main aim of this paper is to discuss whether the 2022 Guidelines are an appropriate tool to address the problems of solo self-employed persons (i.e. persons who are not in a formal employment relationship and who rely primarily on their own personal labour to provide services) from the perspective of EU competition law. To this end, we first present key competition problems related to collective agreements (section 1). Second, we analyse the regulatory framework for exemptions from competition law, with a view for a potential exemption relevant for collective agreements, as well as an approach to collective agreements in EU case law (sections 2 and 3). Third, the background for adopting the Guidelines, and their goals, is analysed (sections 4 and 5). Fourth, the Guidelines are discussed in more detail in sections 6 and 7 from the perspective of exemptions from Art. 101(1) TFEU. Finally, we examine the relationship between the Guidelines and a proposal for a platform work directive. The article attempts to verify the hypothesis that the Guidelines may be considered a pseudo-development.

Abstract: Who should be liable for competition law infringements? While the answer should be, in theory, a simple application of the personal liability principle - the infringer pays - the corporate changes that an infringer may undergo in the years necessary to come to an imputation of the infringement make the matter, in practice, significantly more complex. In this article, we first investigate the core of the antitrust liability theories, all to be traced back to the fundamental concept of undertaking, which constitutes their indispensable theoretical background. Then, we will try to provide an answer to the question, by analyzing, on the basis of the case-law, the multifaceted and colourful applications of antitrust liability theories to M&A transactions involving antitrust infringers. Lastly, we lay out practical suggestions which may be useful for companies to minimize the risks of being left with antitrust liability as a result of corporate transactions.

Abstract: Debates have surged in the European Union (EU) on how EU competition policy can best support the European Green Deal. In the theoretical and practical aspects, non‐economic factors in competition law analysis are problematic due to the difficulty in measuring the concrete benefits of trade‐offs. The National Competition Authorities (NCAs) rather than the European Commission (EC) are leading the ‘sustainability in competition law’ debates, which is the focus of this article. Therefore, this study reviews the current status quo of all NCAs' positions concerning sustainability‐related matters by classifying them into four typologies in terms of their willingness to incorporate sustainability in their assessments. It further identifies four emerging NCAs models, which seem to divert from the EC's view. This can be problematic in ensuring the uniform application of competition law.

Abstract: The duration of infringements of Articles 101 and 102 TFEU has significant implications on the enforcement of those rules and those subject to enforcement. This article examines the European Court of Justice’s case law on the assessment of the duration of an infringement of Article 101 TFEU after the conduct constituting the infringement has ended. While earlier case law focused on continuing market conduct corresponding to the original infringing conduct, more recent case law appears to bring forth an approach centred on the restriction of competition resulting from the conduct. The judgment in Kilpailu- ja kuluttajavirasto suggests that a complete assessment of an infringement’s duration should consider the scrutinized conduct’s restrictive effects on the competition that it distorts. That judgment also suggests that any price effects or other damages suffered by the infringers’ customers do not affect the infringement period’s length.

Abstract: According to the conventional view competition law differs from regulation in that it is applied ex post, through proscriptions, and in a ‘crime-tort’ fashion. From this angle, when competition enforcers intervene ex ante, in a prophylactic manner, and employ prescriptive tools, they inappropriately transform competition law into ‘regulatory antitrust’. The present study challenges this view arguing that modern competition law intervention has moved beyond the crime-tort enforcement model and aspires to be ‘responsive’. This means that modern enforcers intervene ex ante and ex post, use prescriptive and proscriptive tools, and impose restorative and prophylactic remedies to ensure that the law is applied effectively. The works of the Greek Competition Authority offer a case study to illustrate this point. This authority has been utilizing a plurality of tools and enforcement strategies to enhance compliance and deterrence, and apply the law responsively. However, enforcement that aspires to be responsive may create problems of over-enforcement or under-enforcement, be vulnerable to regulatory failures or undermine Rule-of-Law principles. For this reason, this study draws on responsive regulation theory to make fourteen recommendations on how to address these challenges and ensure truly responsive enforcement. competition law, enforcement, remedies, regulation, regulatory theory, competition policy.

Abstract: Competition policy in the EU and UK is in the process of a significant reconfiguration. Its key postulates, methodologies, and normative goals are being subject to intense discussion and revision. The emergence of sui generis ‘new competition tools’ in the area of digital markets—EU Digital Markets Act and UK Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (bill)—epitomises this trend. The purpose of this Article is to attempt to provide legal theoretical foundations for the new subfield of competition law and policy by systematising and conceptualising these trends into the framework of socio-legal scholarship.

Abstract: In 2009 research, the European Commission (EC) noted the growing threat to competition and innovation of using different strategies of intellectual property protection. In its 2016 research, the EC noted the growing trend of the strategic use of intellectual property protection in the technology industry (e.g., audiovisual, telecommunications, digital, computer, IT methods and in other technology markets). In 2021, the European Parliament adopted a resolution regarding an intellectual property action plan to support the EU’s recovery and resilience, on the basis of which it noted that the strategies identified in the 2016 research may, in some cases, be interpreted as abuse loopholes in the current legislation, and this is a problem that should be tackled. This article analyses what constitutes the strategic use of intellectual property protection, why and how it should be distinguished from usual use, and what are the fundamental challenges of assessing the strategic use of intellectual property protection from the perspective of EU competition law. The theses in this article are relevant to the assessment of the specific actions of holders of intellectual property rights in technological and digital markets in the context of competing through innovation.

Abstract: The ongoing rule-of-law crisis in the European Union (EU) has given a new lease of life to a long-forgotten discussion about the relationship between the rule of law and EU competition law. According to this article, the current system of competition-law enforcement in the EU suffers from a rule-of-law deficit attributable to a constitutional set-up in which the EU Commission does not comply with EU fundamental rights, in particular due process, when it enforces EU competition law. The article takes an anatomical approach to EU competition law, proposing a metaphor according to which the Commission is the brain and the hands of the system while the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) is the heart of EU competition law. It is argued that the rule-of-law deficit stems, on the one hand, from the growth in vigour of both fundamental rights and due process and, on the other hand, from the withering force of due process in EU competition-law proceedings. The article further argues that the rule-of-law deficit affecting EU competition law poses risks to the legitimacy of the EU, the functioning of the National Competition Authorities (NCAs) and the protection of EU citizens.

Abstract: Can competition law consider effects on privacy, or should privacy concerns of data-collecting behaviour only be dealt with by data protection law? In this paper, we analyse the German Facebook case, in which the requirement of giving consent to the combination of personal data from different sources was prohibited as exploitative abuse by a dominant firm. We show, from an economic perspective, that due to the simultaneous existence of two market failures (market dominance, information and behavioural problems) and complex interaction effects between both market failures and both policies in digital markets, a new, much more complex relationship emerges. Since the traditional approach of a strict separation of both policies is no longer feasible, a more integrative and collaborative policy approach for competition law and data protection law might be necessary. With respect to the substantive issue in the Facebook case, i.e. protecting a minimum standard of choice for consumers regarding their personal data vis-a-vis dominant digital platform firms, the recent decision by the German Federal Court of Justice in this case and the proposed Digital Markets Act have led to new perspectives for dealing with privacy concerns in competition law and new forms of ex-ante regulation.

Abstract: In  September 2022, the European Union (EU) legislature adopted the Digital Markets Act (DMA)—a landmark piece of regulation with the potential to transform the digital economy in Europe and beyond. Even after adoption, however, questions remain about its stated goals, underlying assumptions, scope, obligations, and eventual effectiveness. This article examines these questions using EU competition law not as a touchstone but as a reference point. First, the DMA’s goals of “fairness” and “contestability” can be more accurately restated as the protection of intra-platform and the promotion of inter-platform competition. Second, the DMA is based on the idea that the enforcement of the abuse of dominance provision, Article 102 Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), is ineffective both procedurally (due to lengthy investigations and remedial issues) and substantively (due to the difficulty of establishing dominance and abuse)—two assumptions that must be tested by examining competition law’s track record (...).

Abstract: This article focuses on the interactions between the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and the laws and competition frameworks of Member States. Specifically, the article sets out three different interpretations on the text of articles 1 (5) and (6) of the DMA, which govern interactions between the DMA and national law and competition policy. The article identifies a narrow, broader, and broadest interpretation of the legal interests protected under the DMA. Each interpretation creates different harmonization effects. The article argues that the narrow and broader interpretations allow for significant divergence between national rules, creating the risk of regulatory fragmentation. The broadest interpretation would allow competition authorities and courts to weigh the interests protected in the DMA against national interests and create greater convergence of laws and competition policy in the Digital Single Market. The article also proposes ways forward for the implementation and enforcement of the DMA and national competition laws.

Abstract: So far, there have been several studies conducted on the subject of automotive cartels, and the majority of the studies you see focus exclusively on cartels. Collusion in the automotive industry was relatively uncommon in the past. However, due to the increasing level of competition in this industry, auto manufacturers are increasingly colluding in a number of areas to survive. The Scania cartel case provided us with a clearer understanding of the phenomenon of automotive cartels, as well as how EU competition law is applied to cartel member's violations and how the European Commission approaches complex infringements. Due to this case, it becomes apparent that there are many legal loopholes within the private enforcement sector, and that victims also face a number of challenges when seeking damages from auto manufacturers.

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