Linklaters (Paris)

Anne Wachsmann

Linklaters (Paris)
Partner

Partner in Linklaters Competition/Antitrust practice in Paris, French lawyer (avocat) at the Paris Bar. Anne has substantial experience in European and French Competition law, particularly merger control, in numerous sectors such as automotive, pharmaceuticals and retail. Anne is also specialized in competition law and has been involved in a large number of high profile cases and litigation before the French Competition Authority and the European Commission. She is ranked in tier 1 as an individual in Chambers. In 2021, she was nominated as one of the “Top 40 of CAC 40 Lawyers” in France by Forbes: “Elle est l’un de nos conseils préférés pour les enquêtes sur les cartels, les accords verticaux et les pratiques anticoncurrentielles. Son attitude est constructive. ” Among her clients are Peugeot (Stellantis), Sanofi, Air France-KLM and Intermarché. Co-author of the Unilateral Practices Chronicles of the review Concurrences since 2004, she is also a visiting professor at the College of Europe where she gives a 25-hour seminar on European Merger Control rules.

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Articles

1394 Bulletin

Anne Wachsmann, Christopher Bellamy KC, Gerwin Van Gerven, Jeffrey Schmidt, Olivier d’Ormesson, Robert Gavin The EU Court of Justice confirms that the Commission must assess whether an agreement to limit parallel trade in medicines has pro-competitive benefits (GlaxoSmithKline)

1081

On 6 October, the European Court of Justice (‘ECJ’) issued another “score draw” judgment in the long-running battle of R&D-based pharmaceutical companies to limit parallel trade in medicines across the EU. While the ECJ required the European Commission to conduct an in-depth examination of (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Christopher Bellamy KC, Gerwin Van Gerven, Jonas Koponen, Joseph Armao, Nicole Kar, Olivier d’Ormesson The EU Commission introduces a new settlement procedure for cartel cases during investigations

313

On 30 June 2008, the European Commission introduced a new settlement procedure for cartel cases. Under the new procedure, the parties in a cartel investigation may acknowledge their breach of European antitrust law and waive certain procedural rights in exchange for a 10% reduction of the (...)

248426 Review

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Incompetence: The French Competition Authority declares that it has no jurisdiction over practices that have not been shown to be detachable from the exercise of a public service remit (E-Pango / RTE)

18

In decision no. 22-D-07 of September 7, 2023, the French Competition Authority [hereinafter "the Authority"] declared itself not competent to assess whether practices linked to RTE ’s refusal to renew E-Pango [hereinafter "E-Pango"] ’s status as "Balance Responsible Entity", which was a legal (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Universal postal service : The Paris Court of Appeal upholds a decision by the French Competition Authority rejecting a referral for lack of jurisdiction and lack of evidence (Adrexo / La Poste)

14

In a ruling dated July 6, 2023, the Paris Court of Appeal rejected an appeal by Adrexo [hereinafter "Adrexo"] and thus upheld decision no. 21-D-22 of September 15, 2021 of the French Competition Authority [hereinafter "the Authority"]. In this case, Adrexo, a company distributing unaddressed (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Communication: The French Supreme Court, drawing conclusions from a decision by the Court of Jurisdictional Disputes, overturns an order by the First President of the Paris Court of Appeal in a case concerning the possibility for the French Competition Authority to issue a communication on a sanction decision for which an appeal is pending (Roche)

200

In decision no. 20-D-11 of September 9, 2020, the French Competition Authority [hereinafter "the Authority"] sanctioned several companies in the Novartis group and the Roche group for abusing their collective dominant position (comm. Anne Wachsmann, Concurrences n° 4-2020, p. 137). Against (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Broadcasting Rights: The French Competition Authority dismisses a claim of unfair and discriminatory trading practices for lack of evidence (Amazon / Groupe Canal + / BEIN Sports)

173

By a decision dated November 30, 2022, the French Competition Authority [hereinafter "the Authority"] rejected, for lack of evidence, the referrals of the Canal Plus Group [hereinafter "GCP"] and of the company beIN Sports France [hereinafter "beIN Sports"] which considered that the Ligue de (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Abuse of economic dependence: The Paris Court of Appeal confirms a decision of the French Competition Authority to reject, for lack of evidence, a complaint for abuse of economic dependence in the sector of publishing and sale of professional software (Cartocad)

151

By a decision of October 20, 2022, the Court of Appeal of Paris [hereinafter the "Court of Appeal"] rejected the appeal of the company Cartocad [hereinafter "Cartocad"] against the decision n° 21-D-04 of February 24, 2021 of the French Competition Authority [hereinafter "the Authority"] by (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Abuse of economic dependence: The Paris Court of Appeal confirms the decision of the French Competition Authority rejecting for lack of evidence a complaint for imposition of unfair and discriminatory trading conditions (Canal+)

248

By a decision dated June 30, 2022, the Paris Court of Appeal [hereinafter the "Court of Appeal"] confirmed the decision of June 11, 2021 of the French Competition Authority [hereinafter the "Authority"] which had rejected a referral from the Canal+ Group [hereinafter "GCP"] for lack of (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Disparagement: The French Supreme Court rejects the appeal against the decision of the Paris Court of Appeal which had essentially confirmed the decision of the French Competition Authority to sanction a pharmaceutical company for abuse of a dominant position which delayed and then limited the development of generic medicines (Janssen-Cilag / Johnson & Johnson)

263

In a ruling dated June 1, 2022, the Court of Cassation dismissed the appeal filed by the laboratory Janssen-Cilag and its parent company Johnson & Johnson [hereafter "Janssen- Cilag"] against the July 11, 2019 judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal, which had largely upheld the decision of (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie, Daniel Green Notion of abuse: The European Court of Justice specifies the criteria to be used to qualify the abuse of a dominant position characterised by exclusionary practices (Servizio Elettrico Nazionale)

560

On May 12, 2022, the Court of Justice of the European Union [hereinafter the "Court of Justice"] delivered a judgment in case C-377/20(Servizio Elettrico Nazionale SpA and Others v. Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (Servizio Elettrico Nazionale SpA and Othersv Autorità Garante (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Collective dominant position: The Paris Court of Appeal confirms the decision of the French Competition Authority rejecting the complaint of a TV channel broadcasting platform alleging an attempt to evict it (Molotov, TF1, M6)

327

In a decision dated September 30, 2021, the Paris Court of Appeal [the "Court of Appeal"] confirmed the decision of the French Competition Authority ["the Authority"] rendered on April 30, 2020, which had rejected the substantive referral of the company Molotov SAS ["Molotov"] and, (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Excessive prices: The French Supreme Court confirms the approach of the Paris Court of Appeal in determining an excessive pricing practice (Sanicorse, Cesarini)

343

By a judgment of 7 July 2021, the Court of Cassation dismissed the appeals of the French Competition Authority ("the Authority") and the Minister of the Economy against the judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal (the "Court of Appeal") of 14 November 2019. The Court of Appeal had in fact (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Abuse of economic dependence: The French Competition Authority rejects complaint against unfair and discriminatory trading conditions for lack of evidence (Canal Plus / Ligue de Football Professionnel)

296

In a decision dated June 11, 2021, the French Competition Authority ("the Authority") rejected the complaint filed by Canal Plus Group ("GCP") for lack of evidence. ("GCP"), which alleged that the French Professional Football League ("LFP") had abused its dominant position by imposing unfair (...)

Catherine Prieto, Laurence Idot, Emmanuel Combe, Anne Wachsmann, David Bosco, Etienne Pfister, Mathilde Poulain, Marie-Cécile Rameau, Josep M. Carpi Badia, Étienne Chantrel, Didier Theophile, Guy Canivet, Rafael P. Amaro, Henri Piffaut, Doris Hildebrand, Paulo Burnier da Silveira, Fatma El-Zahraa Adel The integration of public interest considerations in the application of competition rules (26 Nov 2020)

3414

The integration of public interest considerations is not only desirable, but possible because of the permeability of the competition rules to the reception of well-being by the competitive parameters of quality, choice and innovation in addition to that of price. The scope for progress depends (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Abuse of economic dependence: The French Competition Authority rejects for lack of evidence a complaint for abuse of economic dependence in the sector of publishing and sale of professional software (Cartocad)

201

By a decision of February 24, 2021, the Competition Authority ["the Authority"] rejected for lack of evidence the referral of the company Cartocad ["Cartocad"] which considered that the company Autodesk ["Autodesk"] had committed an abuse of economic dependence against it. Autodesk is an (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Predatory prices: The French Competition Authority rejects a request for interim measures in the absence of serious harm to the general economy, to the sector concerned, to the interest of consumers or to the complainant company, but carries on the analysis on the merits for potential predatory pricing practices (Plüm Énergie)

147

In a decision dated February 18, 2021, the Authority rejected a request for interim measures from Plüm Energie and Plüm Entreprises & Collectivités ["Plüm"] in connection with a complaint about predatory pricing practices by EDF concerning the supply of electricity to small non-residential (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Abuse of exclusion: The French Supreme Court upholds the judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal sanctioning a practice of exclusivity rebates but rejecting a practice of denigration in the terrestrial television broadcasting sector (TDF)

251

In a decision no. 16-D-11 of 6 June 201620 million, the Competition Authority had sanctioned the company TDF, as well as its parents, for two practices of abuse of a dominant position (see F. Marty, Concurrences n° 3-2016, p. 9). The practices in question had taken place in the terrestrial (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Price squeeze: The French Supreme Court overturns a decision of the Paris Court of Appeal for failing to examine the impact of the victim’s conduct on the classification as an abuse of the company’s conduct while in a dominant position (SFR / Orange)

261

In a judgment dated February 12, 2014, the Commercial Court ordered the company Orange ["Orange"] to pay damages of 51.38 million euros to the company SFR ["SFR"] for having abused its dominant position. In this case, whose facts date back to the early 2010’s, Orange offered its customers a (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Collective dominant position: The French Competition Authority sanctions three pharmaceutical companies for denigration practices and for spreading alarmist, even misleading, discourse to public authorities (Novartis ; Roche ; Genentech)

580

In a decision of September 9, 2020, the French Competition Authority ("the Authority") sanctioned Novartis, Roche and Genentech for abusive practices aimed at safeguarding sales of the drug Lucentis for the treatment of age-related macular degeneration ("AMD") to the detriment of the drug (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Exclusionary abuse: The French Supreme Court rejects an appeal against a judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal which validated the sanction, by the French Competition Authority, of an undertaking for a late and partial transmission of essential information in order to answer to invitations to tender and for having put in place anticompetitive prices (Towercast)

363

In a judgment dated June 10, 2020, the French Supreme Court (Cour de Cassation) dismissed an appeal against the judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal (the "Court of Appeal"), which had itself confirmed, in a judgment dated October 12, 2017, Decision No. 15-D-10 of June 11, 2015 by which the (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Dominant collective position: The French Competition Authority rejects a complaint from a television broadcasting platform claiming to be a victim of attempted foreclosure (Molotov)

218

In a decision of 30 April 2020, the Competition Authority (the Authority) rejected the substantive referral of the Molotov company (Molotov) and, consequently, the associated request for interim measures filed against the M6 and TF1 groups. Molotov is a platform that broadcasts television (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Abuse of economic dependance: The French Competition Authority fines an electronic product manufacturer and its wholesalers for an abuse of economic dependence towards its distributors (Apple / Tech Data / Ingram Micro)

783

In a decision dated 16 March 2020 (not available at the time of writing; see press release), the Authority fined Apple €1.1 billion for practices concerning the distribution of its products (excluding iPhones) in France. Its wholesalers Tech Data and Ingram Micro were also fined €76.1 million (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Pay-for-delay: The Court of Justice of the European Union condemns an originator laboratory for an abuse of its dominant position due to the cumulative effect of reverse-payment settlements concluded with generic drug manufacturers (Generics - UK)

401

In a judgment of 30 January 2020 handed down on a reference for a preliminary ruling by the Competition Appeal Tribunal of the United Kingdom, the Court of Justice of the European [Union Court of Justice] provides interesting clarifications with regard to both the concept of anti-competitive (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Excessive price: The Paris Court of Appeal squashes a decision of the French Competition Authority fining a company for excessive pricing (Sanicorse, Cesarini)

403

In a judgment dated November 14, 2019, the Paris Court of Appeal (the "Court of Appeal") annulled the decision of the French Competition Authority ("the Authority") rendered on September 20, 2018 which had sanctioned SANICORSE, jointly and severally with its parent company, SAS Groupe (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Denigration: The Paris Court of Appeal largely upholds the condemnation by the French Competition Authority of a pharmaceutical company for an abuse of its dominant position having delayed and then limited generic entry (Janssen-Cilag / Johnson & Johnson)

867

By a judgment of 11 July 2019, the Paris Court of Appeal largely confirmed the decision of the Competition Authority (’the Authority’) No 17-D-25 of 20 December 2017 which had sanctioned the Janssen-Cilag laboratory, and its parent company Johnson & Johnson, for first delaying and then (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Limitation: The European Commission fines a beer producer for abusing of its dominant position by seeking to limit parallel imports of beers between Member States (AB InBev)

482

In a decision of 13 May 2019, the European Commission (the "Commission") sanctioned AB InBev to the tune of €200 million for abuse of a dominant position on the Belgian beer market. This decision is interesting in that it concerns conduct intended to hinder parallel imports between Member (...)

Muriel Chagny, Nicolas Guérin, Irène Luc, Stanislas Martin, Anne Wachsmann The settlement procedure: Which enforcement in France? (Rendez-Vous de l’Autorité - Paris, October 2nd, 2018)

675

Three years after the introduction of the settlement procedure into the tools available to the Competition Authority, the Authority was able to witness the success and the very strong development of this procedure, with companies increasingly soliciting its application. Before the adoption of (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Rejection of complaint: The French Competition Authority rejects a complaint in the sector for the cross-channel transportation of day-old chicks due to lack of evidence and rejects, as a consequence, the request for interim measures (Gibovendée, L’Envol de Retz / Britanny Ferries, P&O Short Sea Ferries, DFDS Seaways)

649

By a decision of 16 January 2019, the Competition Authority (the ’Authority’) found that there was no need to continue the proceedings initiated following the referral of the companies Gibovendée and L’Envol de Retz (the ’referrals’). The latter contested the fact that three shipping (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Relevant market: The General Court of the European Union finds that the European Commission made a series of errors in defining a relevant market in the pharmaceutical sector (Servier)

578

In a judgment delivered on 12 December 2018, the Court of First Instance of the European Union (the "Court") sanctioned the European Commission (the "Commission") for having committed a series of errors in its analysis of the definition of the relevant market to which perindopril, an (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Excessive pricing: The French Competition Authority fines a company for excessive pricing constitutive of an exploitative and an exclusionary abuse (Sanicorse)

507

In a decision issued on 20 September 2018, the French Competition Authority ("the Authority") sanctioned Sanicorse, jointly and severally with its parent company, SAS Groupe Cesarini, for an abuse of a dominant position in the form of excessive prices. Sanicorse is a company active in the (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Cumulative effect: The French Competition Authority decides not to pursue practices implemented by large computer manufacturers in the sector of computer maintenance (Computer maintenance)

284

By a decision of 27 June 2018, the Competition Authority (the Authority) found that there was no need to continue the proceedings initiated following the referral by the Econocom Group (Econocom) concerning alleged practices by the IT manufacturers IBM, HP and Oracle in the hardware (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Exclusionary abuse: The French Supreme Court rejects a claim against a judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal which confirmed, for the most part, a decision of the French Competition Authority which sanctioned an undertaking for delaying the publication of a referential offer in the upstream market for infrastructures of TV signals diffusion in overseas territories where it has a monopoly position (TDF)

453

The Competition Authority had fined TDF for having, in the context of France Télévisions’ invitations to tender for the switchover of television broadcasting to digital format (DTT) in the overseas territories, unreasonably delayed hosting bids and for having failed to include certain decisive (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Exclusivity clause: The Paris Court of Appeal confirms for the most part a decision of the French Competition Authority fining an undertaking €69 million for abuse of dominant position towards its competitors by practicing, during 9 years, a trade policy aiming at constraining its distributors to supply themselves exclusively from the company (Umicore)

680

In a judgment delivered on 17 May 2018, the Paris Court of Appeal essentially confirmed Decision 16-D-14 on practices in the zinc and zinc products for the building industry (Aut. conc., dec. no. 16-D-14 of 23 June 2016 on practices in the rolled zinc and zinc products for the building (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Generics: The French Competition Authority fines a pharmaceutical company for an abuse of its dominant position having delayed and then limited generic entry (Fentanyl transdermal patches)

484

By Decision No 17-D-25 of 20 December 2017, the Competition Authority ("the Authority") sanctioned Janssen-Cilag, and its parent company Johnson & Johnson, to the tune of €25 million for first delaying and then limiting the development of generics of its drug, Durogesic. In so doing, the (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Damages: The Paris Commercial Court grants damages following an abuse of dominant position in the telecom sector in the Caribbean (Digicel Antilles Françaises Guyane / Orange Caraibe)

936

In a judgment dated December 18, 2017, the Paris Commercial Court ordered Orange to pay 179 million euros in damages to Bouygues Telecom Caraïbe, a subsidiary of the Bouygues Telecom Group, which was acquired by the Digicel Group ("Bouygues"). This is the largest damages award in the context (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Relevant market: The French Supreme Administrative Court confirms the Paris Court of Appeal judgement which had confirmed a French Competition Authority decision not to send back to instruction the identification of a relevant market insufficiently defined, due to the impossibility today to define it taking account of the evolution in event sales sector (Brandalley)

206

In the sector of online event-driven sales, the Competition Authority ("the Authority") had not hesitated to rely on the shortcomings of the investigation to put an end to proceedings brought by Brandalley, which accused Vente-privée.com of having imposed exclusivity clauses on the major (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Commitments: The French Competition Authority accepts commitments to give third-party maintenance providers access to a certain number of spare parts necessary for their operations, provided they agree to undertake required training (Schneider Electric)

222

By Decision No 17-D-21 of 9 November 2017, the Competition Authority (the ’Authority’) accepts and makes binding commitments offered by Schneider Electric in the sector of maintenance of medium-voltage (’MV’) and low-voltage (’LV’) electrical distribution equipment. MV and LV electrical (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Repair and maintenance: The General Court of the European Union upholds a decision of the European Commission considering that watch manufacturers’ refusal to supply spare parts did not constitute a violation of Article 101 and 102 TFEU (CEAHR)

191

Following a complaint lodged by the European Confederation of Watchmakers’ Repairers’ Associations ("CEAHR") against six luxury watch manufacturers (Swatch, LVMH, Rolex, Richemont, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet), which it accused of an agreement and abuse of a dominant position, the (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Absence of dominant position: The French Competition Authority rejects a complaint for abuse of dominant position finding there was no a dominant position given the countervailing power of clients preventing the concerned undertaking to act independently from them (Non judicial auction sales)

169

In this case, the Société du Figaro accused the Drouot group, and in particular its subsidiary Drouot Enchère, of imposing on voluntary sales operators ("VSOs") the exclusive and mandatory use of the Drouot Live platform for the online retransmission of catalogued sales taking place in the (...)

Anne Wachsmann Refusal to sell: The General Court of the European Union upholds a decision of the European Commission to reject a complaint relating to software interoperability (Contact Software)

560

In a judgment of 14 September 2017, the Court of First Instance of the European Union (the "Court") confirmed a decision rejecting a complaint by the European Commission (the "Commission") in a case concerning the issue of interoperability between software from different suppliers and the (...)

Anne Wachsmann Lack of affectation of competition: The French Competition Authority rejects a complaint and a request for interim measures in a case of abuse of economic dependence for lack of affectation of competition in the market for organisation of exhibitions and the market for building of pleasure crafts (Reed Expositions France)

253

By Decision No 17-D-15 of 9 August 2017, the Competition Authority ("the Authority") rejects the referral and the application for interim relief by the Fédération des Industries Nautiques ("FIN"). The latter had complained of an abuse of economic dependence by the company Reed Expositions (...)

Anne Wachsmann Public service activity: The French Competition authority fines a funeral undertaking abusing its dominant position by implementing price discrimination and confusion practices between its public service activities and its competitive activities (Practices implemented in the funeral sector)

316

The Competition Authority ("the Authority") has fined Comtet EUR 80 000 for two abuses of a dominant position in the funeral services sector. With regard to funeral services, crematoria are set up and managed by municipalities and public establishments for intermunicipal cooperation (article (...)

Anne Wachsmann Analytical accounting: The French Competition Authority accepts commitments from a public company seeking, first, to implement an analytical accounting in order to divest its public service activities from its profitable activities and, second, to provide access to a whole range of relevant data in order to allow the development of a fair competition with private actors operating in the market open to competition (preventive archaeology)

187

By Decision No 17-D-09 of 1 June 2017, the Competition Authority (’the Authority’) accepts and makes binding commitments offered by the National Institute for Archaeological Research (’INRAP’). This case presents fairly classic competition law issues. INRAP is an EPA with a monopoly position (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Exclusionary strategy: The French Supreme Court rejects a claim against a Paris Court of Appeal ruling confirming a decision of the French Competition Authority fining a newspaper’s owner for exclusionary practice during the launch of a new newspaper which had no economic sense but to hinder entry of new competitor on the daily press market for sport (Amaury)

250

In a decision dated March 1, 2017, the French Supreme Court (Cour de cassation) dismissed the Amaury group’s appeal against the Paris Court of Appeal’s decision, which had upheld the Competition Authority’s decision against the Amaury group for eviction practices against Le Journal du Sport (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie De facto exclusivity: The French Supreme Court rejects a claim against a Paris Court of Appeal ruling confirming a decision of the French Competition Authority rejecting a complaint against an alleged abuse of dominant position related to a de facto exclusivity (Roland Vlaemynck Tisseur)

643

In a judgment of 8 February 2017, the Court of Cassation dismissed the appeal of Roland Vlaemynck Tisseur against the judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal which had upheld the decision of the Competition Authority rejecting a complaint for an alleged abuse of a dominant position relating to (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Exclusionary Attempt : The Paris Court of Appeal grants interim measures on the basis of Article 873 of the Civil Procedure Code considering that there was an abuse of dominant position notwithstanding main proceeding before the French Competition Authority (Pétanque Longue)

195

In this case, the company Pétanque Longue, active in the marketing of pétanque equipment and in particular Obut branded boules, contested the implementation by its supplier, the company La Boule Obut, of new pricing conditions for the year 2016. La Boule Obut had sent its resellers, a (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Fidelity Rebates : Advocate General Wahl considers that appeal against the imposition of a €1.06 billion fine on a manufacturer of microelectronic devices for abuse of its dominant position should be upheld (Intel)

249

Advocate General Wahl delivered his Opinion on 20 October 2016 in Intel v Commission, whose judgment of the Court of Justice is eagerly awaited, not only because in that case the European Commission had imposed the highest individual fine ever (EUR 1.06 billion) in its decision of 13 May 2009 (...)

Anne Wachsmann Exclusionary practice: The Paris Court of Appeals confirms a French Competition Authority’s decision fining an undertaking for delaying a reference offer publication on the upstream market of infrastructures for TV signal diffusion overseas, where it was in a monopolistic position and whose access was necessary for its competitors to join the downstream market for TV signal diffusion (TDF)

161

The Competition Authority had fined TDF for having, in the context of France Télévisions’ calls for tenders for the switchover of television broadcasting to digital format (DTT) in the overseas territories, delayed the hosting offers without valid reasons, and for having failed to include (...)

Anne Wachsmann Exclusivity clause: The French Competition Authority fines an undertaking €69 million for abuse of dominant position towards its competitors by practicing, during 9 years, a trade policy aiming at constraining its distributors to supply themselves exclusively from the company (Umicore)

573

On 23 June 2016, the Belgian Competition Authority imposed a heavy sanction on the Belgian zinc producer Umicore for having imposed exclusive purchasing obligations on its authorized distributors for nine years between 1999 and the end of 2007 prohibiting them from selling products competing (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Relevant market: The Paris Court of Appeal upholds the French Competition Authority decision not to pursue the search for a relevant market definition insufficiently defined during the inquiry, because of the impossibility to define it today due to the evolution of the sector in a case regarding online sales events (Brandalley)

306

In the field of online event-driven sales, the Competition Authority ("the Authority") had not hesitated to rely on the shortcomings of the investigation in order to terminate a procedure (Aut. conc., Dec. No. 14-D-18 of 28 Nov. 2014 on practices in the field of online event-driven sales, (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Predatory pricing: The Paris Court of Appeal upholds a judgment from the Paris Commercial Court refusing to provide damages for an alleged abuse of dominant position due to lack of proof (Imperial Pub et Gps)

242

Swiss Post has a number of companies, including Mediapost, which specializes in the distribution of advertising leaflets in letterboxes. Two of its competitors, Imperial Pub and Gps had brought actions against La Poste and Mediapost before the Paris Commercial Court seeking compensation for (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Essential facility: The Paris Court of Appeal confirms a French National Competition Authority’s decision holding itself incompetent in relation to practices falling under public service of national health insurrance’s electronic data entry (Celtipharm)

255

The Competition Authority had been referred to it by the company Celtipharm, which accused the Caisse Nationale d’Assurance Maladie des Travailleurs Salariés (the "CNAMTS") and GIE SESAM-Vitale (the "GIE") of having refused it access to an essential infrastructure, namely real-time access to (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Self-referral opinion: The French National Competition Authority issues, on its own initiative, an opinion on the competition context in the hearing aid market

297

Following an investigation by the consumer association UFC-Que Choisir and two reports by the IGAS and the Court of Auditors, the Authority is examining the competitive situation in the hearing aid sector. The French market is in fact characterised by a lower rate of fitting than neighbouring (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Tenders : The French Competition Authority fines an undertaking for a late and partial transmission of essential information in order to answer to invitations to tender and for having put in place anticompetitive prices (TDF)

338

The French Competition Authority ("the Authority") has once again sanctioned TDF, a company specialising in the broadcasting of audiovisual services and former holder of the monopoly on radio and television broadcasting, in a case involving the eviction of a competitor when renewing (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Exclusionary abuse : The Paris Court of Appeals confirms the French Competition Authority’s decision fining the owner of a newspaper for exclusionary conduct based on the launch of a new daily newspaper, economically unjustified but aiming at preventing a competitor from entering the market of daily sports information press (Amaury)

266

In a decision dated May 15, 2015, the Paris Court of Appeal upheld in its entirety the decision of the French Competition Authority which had sanctioned the Amaury group for practices of eviction against the company Le Journal du Sport (decision no. 14-D-02 of February 20, 2014 relating to (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Commitments : The Paris Commercial Court recognises, within the terms of succinct reasoning, the existence of fault of two companies who benefited from the commitments procedure before the French Competition Authority, and thereby concludes that this results in damages for the claimant which must be addressed (DKT/Eco-Emballages and Valorplast)

497

The decision of the Paris Commercial Court (the "Court") of 30 March 2015 is part of the so-called follow-up civil actions, initiated by plaintiffs who consider themselves victims of anti-competitive practices, following decisions adopted by the French Competition Authority (the "Authority"). (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Discriminating practices : The Paris Court of Appeals confirms the Competition Authority’s sanction of de facto exclusivity clauses in the sector of accounting and tax on-line declaration (ECMA)

304

CA Paris, Feb. 26, 2015, ECMA The Paris Court of Appeal confirmed the decision of the Competition Authority which had sanctioned the Order of Chartered Accountants and the ECMA association, created by the latter to market the accounting and tax declaration portal "jedeclare.com", in the (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Monopole : The French Competition Authority fines an undertaking for having delayed the publication of a reference offer on the upstream market of broadcasting infrastructure for overseas television signals in which it holds a monopolistic position and whose access was necessary for competitors to enter the downstream market of television broadcasting (Broadcasting infrastructure for overseas television signals)

327

Decision No. 15-D-01 of 5 Feb. 2015 on practices in the sector of over-the-air television broadcasting in overseas territories. The French Competition Authority ("the Authority") has shown on numerous occasions that it ensures compliance with competition law in the overseas territories and (...)

Anne Wachsmann Relevant market : The French Competition Authority dismisses charges in a case regarding online sales events, following a relevant market insufficiently defined during the inquiry and the impossibility to define it due to the evolution of the sector

735

In a sector such as the Internet, where markets are made and unmake quickly, the Competition Authority ("the Authority") has not hesitated to rely on the shortcomings of the investigation in order to terminate proceedings, while alerting market players to the fragility of certain exclusivity (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Public domain : The French Competition Authority dismisses charges in a case regarding ship repair yards for lack of jurisdiction and, for the rest, dismisses the accusation of discrimination and other abuses for lack of proof

578

The Competition Authority ("the Authority") is issuing a new decision on the borderline between public law and competition law, following a referral by Nautech, a company active in ship repair, and more particularly in the repair of large and very large pleasure craft (over 40 metres in (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Public administrative service : The French Competition Authority declines competence regarding practices in the public administrative sector of electronic health insurance data

212

The Competition Authority had been seized by the company Celtipharm, which accused the Caisse Nationale d’Assurance Maladie des Travailleurs Salariés (the "CNAMTS") and GIE SESAM-Vitale (the "GIE") of having refused it access to an essential infrastructure, namely real-time access to the data (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Refusal to sale : The Paris Court of Appeals sanctions a local journal for a refusal to sale with a foreclosure effect in the sector of online obituaries and books of condolence (La Montagne, Aviscom)

378

If the respect of competition law in the funeral market raised interesting questions in its time, it is the obituary publication sector that is now the subject of a ruling by the Paris Court of Appeal (the "Court"), handed down on appeal from a judgment of the Lyon Commercial Court of 30 April (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Disparagement : The French Competition Authority fines a producer of dairy products for denigration against one of its competitors leading to its delisting by several distributors (SNYL)

338

The Competition Authority ("the Authority") has just issued a new decision on abusive disparagement, imposing a fine of €1.67 million on Société Nouvelle des Yaourts de Littée ("SNYL"). SNYL is active in the dairy production sector. Established in Martinique, it manufactures in particular (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Abuse of dominance : The Paris Court of Appeals confirms the French Competition Authority’s dismissal decision in a dominant position case in the Internet advertisement sector (E-Kanopi)

263

The company E-Kanopi ("E-Kanopi"), which operates several websites, has "Adwords" and "AdSense" accounts opened with Google in order to use the latter’s online advertising services. Google had suspended those accounts for a period of time due to non-compliance with its general terms and (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Fidelity rebates : The General Court of the European Union upholds the Commission’s decision and clearly reiterates that rebates conditional on exclusivity and payments aimed at preventing competitors from reaching the market are capable of restricting competition and foreclosing competitors from the market without the need to demonstrate any potential or actual effect on the market (Intel / Commission)

829

The judgment of the Court of First Instance in the Intel case was eagerly awaited. Not only had this case led the European Commission (the "Commission") to impose the highest individual fine ever imposed (EUR 1.06 billion) in its decision of 13 May 2009 (EC Commission, Dec. C(2009) 3726 final (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Competence : The Paris Cour of Appeals confirms the application by the French Competition Authority of the case law of the French Tribunal des Conflits and its consideration of which potential abusive conducts fall within its jurisdiction (Baggage Home)

227

By a judgment of 27 February 2014, the Paris Court of Appeal confirmed in its entirety Decision 12-D-21 of 18 October 2012 issued by the French Competition Authority ("the Authority") (Aut. conc., 18 October 2012, dec. no. 12-D-21 relating to practices identified in the baggage delivery sector (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Exclusion: The French Competition Authority fines the owner of a newspaper for an abusive exclusionary conduct based on the economically unsound launch of a new daily newspaper in order to stop the market entry of a competitor on the market for daily sports press

244

The decision of the Competition Authority (hereinafter ’the Authority’) of 20 February 2014 concerning daily sports newspapers provides an interesting example of exclusionary abuse based on economically non-rational behaviour, i.e. giving rise to a financial sacrifice going beyond the usual (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Dismissal: The French Competition Authority rejects a complaint regarding an allegedly abuse of a dominant position in relation to a de facto exclusivity in the sector of industrial towels (RWT / Mewa)

299

In a decision of 6 April 2012, the Competition Authority (’the Authority’) partially dismissed the complaint of Roland Vlaemynck Tisseur (’RVT’) against Mewa (’Mewa’) and postponed the investigation of a possible de facto exclusivity (’Aut. conc, Dec. No 12-D-11 of 6 April 2012 concerning a (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Exclusionary abuse - Fidelity rebates : The French Competition Authority fines a pharmaceutical company for denigration and fidelity rebates granted to pharmacists with a view to hamper the market entry of a generic company

949

With the publication on the same day of a decision and an opinion, the Competition Authority (the "Authority") closes a rich year for the pharmaceutical sector in 2013. The European Commission adopted two decisions (not yet published) on pay-for-delay in the Lundbeckcases of 19 June 2013. (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Economy of means: The Paris Court of appeal confirms all aspects of the partial dismissal of the case and referral of a part of the investigation file to the French Competition Authority in the industrial wipes case (Roland Vlaemynck Tisseur)

199

In a decision of 6 April 2012, the Competition Authority had partially dismissed the case by rejecting the complaint of Roland Vlaemynck Tisseur (’RVT’) against Mewa (’Mewa’) and by referring the examination of a possible de facto exclusivity to the investigation (see Aut. conc, Dec. No. (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Incompetence: The French Competition Authority does not have jurisdiction over decisions made by the Conseil supérieur des messageries de presse (CSMP) (Messageries lyonnaises de presse)

165

The Messageries lyonnaises de presse (MLP) had referred the matter to the Authority to challenge certain decisions adopted by the Conseil supérieur des messageries de presse (CSMP). The MLP also accused Presstalis, another press messaging company, of several anti-competitive practices. This (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Refusal of supply: The French Competition Authority considers that a manufacturer, even in a dominant position, remains free to choose which products it wants to create and manufacture through a commercial partnership (Residential electrical equipment)

437

The Competition Authority (the "Authority") recalls, under the terms of its Decision No 13-D-08 of 15 April 2013, that competition law is not intended to give small businesses complete freedom to establish themselves as partners of dominant companies. In this case, the Centr’Halles company (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Connected markets - Tying: The French Competition Authority accepts commitments from a sport federation by which the Federation stops tying the delivery of sport licences with supplementary insurances (Distribution of insurance products to golfers)

476

Aut. conc. dec. no. 12-D-29 of 21 December 2012 relating to practices identified in the sector of distribution of supplementary insurance for golf players By a decision accepting commitments, the Competition Authority closes a new case combining a public service remit and separate economic (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Market definition - Abusive use of regulatory procedures: The Court of Justice sanctions definitively the abusive use of regulatory procedures to prevent or delay the arrival of generic drugs on the market (AstraZeneca)

770

CJEU, 6 December 2012, AstraZeneca AB and AstraZeneca plc v Commission, C-457/10 P The judgment of the Court of Justice of 6 December 2012 brings to a close the judicial saga relating to the decision of the European Commission (the "Commission") which for the first time sanctioned the misuse (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Jurisdiction: The French Competition Authority applies the case law of the French Tribunal des Conflits and establishes which potential abusive conducts fall within its jurisdiction (Luggages)

344

Aut. conc., 18.10.12, Dec. No. 12-D-21 relating to practices noted in the baggage delivery sector at Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport. The Competition Authority has decided on its competence to examine certain practices of Aéroports de Paris (ADP). In this case, the complainant was a newly (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Abuse of economic dependence – Refusal of purchase – Exclusivity clauses: The French Competition Authority rejects a complaint for abusive early termination of a contractual relationship but refers the case back to the investigation body with regard to the analysis of exclusivity clauses and their potential anticompetitive effects (Roland Vlaemynck Tisseur)

560

Aut. conc. dec. no. 12-D-11 of 6 April 2012 concerning a referral by Roland Vlaemynck Tisseur against practices implemented in the sector of manufacturing and marketing of industrial towels The Competition Authority (hereinafter the ’Authority’) reminds us, in its Decision No 12-D-11 of 6 (...)

Anne Wachsmann Denigration – Abuse of legal proceedings: The French Competition Authority declares itself incompetent to rule on practices restricting access to Airport facilities and rejects the complaint of a company running a car parking area near Lille airport (Sogarel)

394

Aut. conc. dec. no. 11-D-15 of 16 November 2011 relating to practices implemented by Sogarel in the sector of car parks for passengers at Lille airport Where it is learned that a certificate written by the complainant’s mother, contrary to the school’s apology, has no probative value before (...)

Anne Wachsmann Commitments – Economic dependence: The French Competition Auhtority accepts and makes legally binding commitments from Carrefour aimed at addressing the competition concerns raised by its practices towards its franchisee (Carrefour)

432

Concord Aut. dec. no. 11-D-20 of December 16, 2011 relating to practices implemented by Carrefour in the food retail sector Continued... and end of the Carrefour case concerning the contractual practices of this group with respect to one of its franchisees under the Champion brand. Indeed, (...)

Anne Wachsmann Cross subsidies – Commitments: The French Competition Authority accepts and makes legally binding commitments from a company relating to separation of the accounting of its activities (Météo-France)

359

Aut. conc., Dec. n° 12-D-04 of 23 January 2012 relating to practices implemented in the sector of the provision of meteorological information to professionals, "Météo-France". The requirement for a clear accounting separation between the monopoly and competitive activities of public (...)

Anne Wachsmann Food retail sector: The French Competition Authority notes that the food retail sector in Paris is extremely concentrated and recommends the creation of a new legislative instrument to increase competition (i.e. the injunction to sell stores) (Food retail sector in Paris)

366

Aut. conc. opinion No. 12-A-01 of 11 January 2012 on the competitive situation in the food distribution sector in Paris And three! The competition situation in the food distribution sector seems to be clearly in the Authority’s sights. After the two notices published on 7 December 2010 (...)

Anne Wachsmann Commitments: The French Competition Authority invites the thirds interested to comment the commitments’ proposals in the sector of provision of meteorological information for professionals (Météo-France)

553

(See also, infra, "Procedures" column, obs. C. Lemaire and S. Naudin) In the context of proceedings following a complaint by the company Météo Consult, the Competition Authority examined the reality of the separation between the public service missions of Météo France and its commercial (...)

Anne Wachsmann Exclusionary abuses – Commitments: The French Competition Authority makes binding the commitments proposed by a press distribution service provider in order to modify its relationships with press retailers (French press distribution sector)

244

Council Decision of 12 July 2012 on practices implemented in the press distribution sector. Unilateral practices - Unfair eviction - Commitments - Press distribution sector - Contract termination clause : The Competition Authority accepts commitments offered by a press distribution company (...)

Anne Wachsmann Economic dependence: The French Competition Authority rejects the demand for interim measures submitted by a franchisee against a distribution group but continue its investigation to determine if the practices implemented by this group can be considered as an abuse of economic dependence (Carrefour group ; Food distribution sector)

916

Aut. conc. dec. no. 11-D-04 of February 23, 2011 relating to practices implemented by Carrefour in the food distribution sector Currently, the retail sector is under the supervision of the Competition Authority (the "Authority"). Following a sector inquiry initiated by a self-regulatory (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Dominant position: The French Competition Authority dismisses charges in the cetirizine tablets case for lack of dominant position after a detailed analysis of the market definition (UCB pharma)

1131

Aut. conc. dec. no. 10-D-37 of 17 December 2010 concerning practices implemented on the cetirizine tablet market Under French law, the pharmaceutical sector is under the active surveillance of the competition authorities and is today one of the privileged areas of application (or attempted (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Relevant Market: The General Court overrules a decision of the Commission rejecting a complaint lodged by an association of watchmaker-repairers (CEAHR)

1384

Trib. EU, 15 December 2010, CEAHR v Commission, Case T-427/08 The European Confederation of Watchmakers’ Repairers’ Associations ("CEAHR") brought a case before the European Commission ("the Commission") against six manufacturers of luxury watches for alleged cartel practices and abuse of a (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Misuse of the patent system : The General Court essentially upholds the Commission decision but reduces the fine imposed on a pharmaceutical group (AstraZeneca)

1523

The decision of the European Commission (the "Commission") of 15 June 2005 in the AstraZeneca case (Commission, 15 June 2005, AstraZeneca, Case 37.507) was one of the first cases in the field of pharmaceuticals dealing with the commercial policy of a laboratory holding an originator product in (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Refusal: The Paris Court of Appeal rejects the appeal of a gas company against the fines imposed on it by the French Competition Authority for denigration of the reputation of a new entrant on the market for the supply of electricity to small-sized professional clients on the Grenoble electricity distribution network (Gaz de Grenoble)

1538

CA Paris, ch. 5-7, March 23, 2010, Gaz de Grenoble v. Aut. conc., Dec. No. 09-D-14 of 25 March 2009 concerning practices in the electricity supply sector Gaz de Grenoble had been sanctioned by the Competition Authority for having denigrated its competitor Poweo (Aut. conc., dec. no. 09-D-14 (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Analysis of the anticompetitive character: The Paris Court of Appeal confirms the French Competition Authority’s decision finding the presentation of a global bid in response to the invitation to tender for the provision of shipping services to be an abuse of a dominant position, given that the incumbent operator knew that it would be impossible for its competitors to compete with such a bid (SNCM)

2367

CA Paris, ch. 5-7, March 9, 2010, SNCMv. Council, Dec. No. 09-D-10 on practices in the maritime transport sector between Corsica and the mainland The Paris Court of Appeal was seised of an appeal by SNCM against the latest decision of the Competition Council by which it had penalised that (...)

Anne Wachsmann Existence of anticompetitive practices: The French Competition Authority refuses to grant interim measures but indicates that there is a strong possibility that the broadcasting infrastructures incumbent may be found to have behaved anti-competitively as regards to access to certain facilities as well as to communication of non-transparent and discriminatory pricing conditions (Itas Tim ; TDF)

1570

Convening Decision No. 10-D-09 of 9 March 2010 on the requests for interim measures submitted by Itas Tim concerning practices implemented by TDF in the sector of digital terrestrial broadcasting services In its decision, the Competition Authority, in a complaint and request for interim (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Restrictive definition of essential facilities: The Paris Court of Appeal recalls the restrictive definition of essential facilities in the publishing industry (Editions Jean-Paul Gisserot)

1718

CA Paris, ch. 5-7, 23 February 2010, Editions Jean-Paul Gisserot SA v. Council, Dec. No. 08-D-08 of 29 April 2008 on practices in the field of publishing and sale of tourism monographs Is this the end of the contentious saga for Éditions Gisserot? After many episodes before the (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Abuse of power - Large retail distribution : The European Parliament issues a declaration on investigating and remedying abuse of power by large supermarkets operating in the European Union

3097

– European Parliament, Declaration on the need to investigate and remedy abuses of power by large supermarkets established in the European Union, P6_TA(2008)0054, OJEU No C. 184E of 6 August 2009, p. 23. During the month of August, a "Declaration of the European Parliament on the need to (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Nicolas Zacharie Predatory pricing: The French Competition Authority rejects the request for interim measures in a predatory pricing case in the pharmaceutical sector but continues its investigations on the merits of the case (Janssen-Cilag France)

2116

– Aut. conc. dec. no. 09-D-28 of 31 July 2009 relating to practices of Janssen-Cilag France in the pharmaceutical sector The Commission’s sector inquiry, which is still very much in the public eye, ended with the publication of a report on 8 July (Final Report of the Commission available on (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Essential facilities - Refusal to access: The French Competition Authority continues to examine the alleged practice of refusal of access to a database (Euris)

2532

– Aut. conc. dec. no. 09-D-29 of 31 July 2009 relating to a request for precautionary measures submitted by Euris Euris, a company specializing in customer relationship management (CRM) solutions for the pharmaceutical industry, had filed a complaint with the French Competition Authority (...)

Anne Wachsmann Body entitled with special or exlcusive rights - Neutrality requirement: The French Competition Authority suspects the company in charge of operating the monopoly for waste packaging of lacking in neutrality in discharging its task of redistributing to local authorities funds received from companies whose businesses involve the creation of waste packaging (DKT ; Eco-Emballages)

1936

– Council Regulation (EC) No 09-D-26 of 26 July 2009 on an application for interim measures submitted by DKT International in the sector of the take-back and recovery of household plastic packaging waste The sector of treatment, sorting and recycling of packaging waste has been particularly (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Exclusive supply: The French Court of Cassation has in part reversed the judgment of the Paris Court of Appeals on the grounds that an exclusive supply clause imposed by two suppliers on their clients is not sufficient to establish joint conduct permitting them to place themselves outside market conditions (Ciments corses)

2215

Cass. com, July 7, 2009, Vicat and Lafarge Ciments, No. 08-15.609 and 08-16.094, Corsican Cement aff. In 2007, the French Competition Council sanctioned Lafarge Ciments, Vicat and their distributors for partitioning the market for the supply of cement to Corsica to the detriment of Italian (...)

Anne Wachsmann Competence of the NCA: The French Tribunal des conflits has, for the first time, ruled in favour of the competence of the French Competition Authority (as opposed to administrative courts) in a case concerning anti-competitive practices relating to a public contract (Éditions Gisserot)

2800

– T. confl, 4 May 2009, Prefect of Paris (Éditions Gisserot v. CMN), No. C3714. "Monument éditorial en péril" was the title of a daily newspaper (Le Monde, 6 May 2009) referring to the case between Éditions Gisserot and the Centre des monuments nationaux ("the CMN"), a public administrative (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Cross-subsdidies: The French Competition Authority turns the spotlight on the electricity incumbent’s commercial communication policy and the separation of its public service activities from those of its subsidiaries in the competitive business sector (Solaire Direct)

2737

Aut. conc. dec. no. 09-MC-01 of 8 April 2009 relating to the referral on the merits of the case and the request for provisional measures presented by the company Solaire Direct The activities of an incumbent operator once again contribute to making competition law topical. Indeed, new (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Predatory pricing: The Court of Cassation upholds the analysis of the Paris Court of Appeal regarding the absence of predatory pricing (GlaxoSmithkline France)

3698

Cass. com, 17 March 2009, Minister of the Economy, No. 08-14.503, aff. "GlaxoSmithkline France". On March 14, 2007, the Competition Council had issued its first decision, which was particularly noteworthy, condemning a company for predatory pricing (cons. conc. déc. n° 07-D-09 of March 14, (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Call for tender: The French Competition Council confirms its analysis characterising anticompetitive behaviour during a call for tender for maritime services between Corsica and Marseilles (SNCM)

3766

Conc. conc. dec. no. 09-D-10 of 27 February 2009 on practices implemented in the maritime transport sector between Corsica and the mainland In December 2006, the Competition Council, acting on a complaint from the Compagnie Méridionale de Navigation (’CMN’) and Corsica Ferries, considered (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Discrimination - Tying: The Paris Court of Appeal rejects the appeal in the Port of Le Havre case and upholds the NCA’s analysis about discrimination and tying in the sector of coal handling services (CIPHA)

2763

CA Paris, 1st ch. H, 5 November 2008, CIPHA and others.against Cons. conc., Dec. no. 07-D-28 of 13 September 2007 relating to practices implemented by the autonomous port of Le Havre, the Compagnie industrielle des pondéreux, the société havraise de gestion et de transport and the société (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Bastien Thomas Exclusivity: The French Competition Council rejects a request for interim measures against Photomaton but continues its investigations (Cybervitrine - Photomaton)

3777

Council Decision No. 08-D-16 of July 3, 2008 on a request for precautionary measures presented by the company Cybervitrine against practices implemented by the company Photomaton. New developments in the field of photography! The Cybervitrine company, active in the marketing of automatic (...)

Anne Wachsmann Essential facilities: The French Competition Council rejects the request for interim measures as well as the referral of a specialised publisher regarding the qualification as essential facilities of points of sales located in places of interest (Specialised publishing sector)

3346

Conc. conc. dec. no. 08-D-08 of 29 April 2008 on practices implemented in the sector of publishing and sale of tourism monographs Once again after the dispute between the monks of the Abbey of the Islands of Lérins and a carrier (Cons. conc., Dec. No. 05-D-60, 8 November 2005, relating to (...)

Anne Wachsmann Interim measures: The French Competition Council enjoins a pharmaceutical company to abstain from disparaging practices against a generic medicines manufacturer (Arrow Génériques)

3838

Conc. conc. dec. no. 07-MC-06 of December 11, 2007 relating to a request for precautionary measures presented by Arrow Génériques Issues related to pharmaceutical products continue to occupy the agenda of the Competition Council. Indeed, the Competition Council has truly pre-empted an area (...)

Anne Wachsmann Discrimination: The French Competition Council fines the port of Le Havre and its contractor for abuses of dominant position on the market for coal handling services (Havre Manutention)

3980

Cons. conc. dec. n° 07-D-28 of September 13, 2007 relating to practices implemented by the Port Autonome du Havre, the Compagnie Industrielle des Poids du Havre, the Société Havraise de Gestion et de Transport and the company Havre Manutention. The Competition Council seized of (...)

Anne Wachsmann Discriminatory rebates: The French Competition Council finds that objections against discriminatory rebates are without merit due to the absence of exclusionary effect of the practices at hand (Pra-Loup)

4166

In a decision of 2 May 2007, the Competition Council ruled that there was no need to continue proceedings initiated by the Minister of the Economy against the company Transmontagne, which operates by delegation the public service of the ski lifts and the ski slopes of the resort of Pra-Loup. (...)

Anne Wachsmann Electricity: The French Competition Council orders EDF to define termination provisions in its contracts in the context of the opening of the French electricity market (KalibraXE)

4295

Conc. conc. dec. no. 07-MC-01 of 25 April 2007 relating to a request for provisional measures by the company KalibraXE The opening up of the electricity market to private individuals on 1 July 2007 is causing renewed tension within the Competition Council, which has been prompted by numerous (...)

Anne Wachsmann Excessively low prices: The French Competition Council rejects new interim measures sought by Corsica Ferries but continues to carry out its investigation on excessive subsidies that could have been granted to SNCM and CMN (Corsica Ferries)

3992

Conc. conc. dec. no. 07-D-13 of 6 April 2007 on new requests for provisional measures in the maritime transport sector between Corsica and the mainland The question of maritime links between Corsica and the port of Marseille is making waves all the time! It will be remembered that, on 11 (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Charles Pommies, Laurent Flochel Predatory pricing: The French Competition Council imposes a heavy fine for predatory prices aimed at impending the growth of generic medicines in hospitals (GlaxoSmithKline)

6927

Cons. conc. dec. no. 07-D-09 of 14 March 2007 relating to practices implemented by the GlaxoSmithKline France laboratory Two decisions, one French, the other Community, relating to predatory pricing, differ significantly on the criteria applied to classify predation practices (see (...)

Anne Wachsmann Interim measures: The French Competition Council orders the SNCM to clarify the terms of its global offer in response to a tender procedure for the maritime routes between Corsica and Marseilles (SNCM/Corsica Ferries)

4492

Conc. conc. dec. no. 06-MC-03 of 11 December 2006 on requests for provisional measures in the maritime transport sector between Corsica and the mainland Once again referred to in a maritime transport case (see in particular Cons. conc., dec. no. 04-D-79 of 23 December 2004 relating to (...)

Anne Wachsmann Excessive low prices: The French Competition Council rejects claims made against the National Geographic Institute for excessively low prices and discriminatory practices (IGN)

4237

Concordant Consensus, Dec. n° 06-D-23 of 21 July 2006 on the situation of competition in the map publishing and tourist information sectors (IGN) The leaders of the National Geographic Institute (NGI) certainly no longer need a map to find the Rue de l’Échelle. The Competition Council has (...)

Anne Wachsmann Drugs parallel exports: The French Competition Council decides that pharmaceutical companies do not abuse their dominant position by restricting exports by third parties (Exportations parallèles de médicaments)

4977

Conc. conc. dec. no. 05-D-72 of 20 December 2005 on practices implemented by various laboratories in the sector of parallel exports of medicines Since the Court of Justice did not resolve this in the Syfait case, the Competition Council did! Restrictions on parallel trade in medicinal (...)

Amandine Bouin, Anne Wachsmann Distribution Network: The French Competition Council adopts a narrow market definition for spares but a wide-ranging freedom to organize the distribution network (Jaeger Lecoultre)

7144

Cons. conc. dec. no. 05-D-46 of July 28, 2005 relating to practices implemented by Jaeger Lecoultre In order to promote their image of quality and luxury, several watchmaking groups decided in the 1990s to better control their after-sales service. Jaeger Lecoultre has reorganised itself in (...)

Anne Wachsmann Loyalty rebates: The French Competition Council condemns Royal Canin for loyalty-inducing rebates in the market of dry food for dogs sold through specialized retailers (Royal Canin)

6114

Conc. dec. no. 05-D-32 of 22 June 2005 relating to practices implemented by Royal Canin and its distribution network The present case raises interesting issues as to the role of distribution channels in the definition of the relevant market and as to the Competition Council’s room for (...)

Anne Wachsmann, Eric Dussoubs Dominant position: The European Commission accepts Coca-Cola settlements not to abuse its dominant position and allows it to escape a condemnation (Coca-Cola)

4861

EC Commission, Article 27§4 R. No. 1/2003 of 26 November 2004, Coca-Cola, Case COMP/39.116 Once again, the European Commission is called upon to rule on the commercial policy of The Coca-Cola Company (hereafter Coca-Cola or TCCC). In addition to the numerous acquisitions of the US group, (...)

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