October 2007

Anticompetitive practices

 The French Competition Authority imposes commitments to address competition concerns in the sector of car repair (Citroën)
French Competition Authority (Paris)
France 741 contributions 394515 visits
Press Release published on the official website of the French Competition Authority. Conseil de la concurrence strengthens competition in the sector of car repair: Independent repairers will now have access to all Citroën’s tools necessary for repairing electronic breakdowns on the brand’s (...)

The Italian Competition Authority fines EUR 10 million 15 local public transport operators for collusive tendering (Servizi Aggiuntivi nel Trasporto Pubblico nel Comune di Roma)
Municipality of Cagliari
166 contributions 132959 visits
The Italian Competition Authority (ICA) has condemned 15 bus operators, SITA, APM, COTRI, ACTV, GTT, Transdev, ATCM, Trambus, ATC Bologna, ATAF, ATC La Spezia, ATP, Tempi, TEP and APAM, for collusive tendering carried out since 2001 until 2007. The penalised firms agreed to coordinate their (...)

The German Competition Authority approves mobile television broadcasting cooperation subject to commitments (T-Mobile / Vodafone / O2)
Blomstein (Berlin)
Germany 16 contributions 43906 visits
Background The market for mobile television is still at an early stage of the development. In Germany, different mobile TV standards have undergone test phases but until now no German-wide system is in operation. Already in 2006, three major mobile phone network operators T-Mobile, (...)

The European Commission consults on settlement procedure in cartel cases
Secretary of State for the Home Department (London)
United Kingdom 17 contributions 34946 visits
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Linklaters (London)
United Kingdom 15 contributions 16684 visits
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Cooley (Brussels)
Belgium 18 contributions 7011 visits
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On 26 October 2007, the European Commission initiated a public consultation on a new settlement procedure in cartel cases. The procedure outlined in the Commission’s proposal is aimed at making the Commission’s investigations more efficient. Public comments are due by 21 December 2007 and the (...)

The Belgian Competition Authority assesses the validity of opening days/hours and advertising provisions for pharmacy outlets as set by the pharmacists’ professional associations (Belgian Pharmacists Associations)
Liège University
France 39 contributions 158117 visits
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European University Institute (Florence)
Italy 49 contributions 104866 visits
1. Parties The present case arose from three complaints lodged in 1998 by several retail pharmacy outlets before the Belgian Competition Council (“the Council”). The complaints were directed against the Belgian Pharmacists Association as well as various local pharmacists association (...)

The Spanish National Competition Commission rules that neither inter- nor intra-brand competition is affected by restrictive practices in the postal sector (Logimail / Unipost)
University College London
United Kingdom 6 contributions 12906 visits
On April 29th, 2005, Logimail filed a complaint against Unipost. Logimail is a postal operator that performs pickup services, sorting and even distribution. To complete the distribution, however, it outsources the service to other postal operators. Unipost is one of the main postal-services (...)

The Supreme Court of Cyprus holds that the Commission for the Protection of Competition doesn’t have to conduct a preliminary investigation for the issue of interim orders (Hellenic Petroleum)
Ernst & Young (Nicosia)
Cyprus 9 contributions 1709 visits
Factual Background The present recourse follows a decision by the Cyprus Commission for the Protection of Competition by which the applicants were ordered, by way of interim order to supply seamlessly with petrol, the petrol station of Antonakis Loizou (interested party to the present (...)

The UK High Court finds that following an infringement decision by the EU Commission, the appropriate claim is for compensatory and not exemplary or restitutionary damages (Devenish Nutrition / Sanofi-Aventis)
European Commission - Legal Service (Brussels)
Belgium 15 contributions 41445 visits
The High Court’s judgment is the first time that an English court has to consider what type of damages can be obtained in claims following from an infringement decision by the European Commission in competition cases. According to the judgment, a claimant is only entitled to compensatory (...)

The UK Court of Appeal upholds the High Court’s finding that following an infringement decision by the EU Commission, the appropriate claim is compensatory and not restitutionary damages (Devenish Nutrition / Sanofi-Aventis)
European Commission - Legal Service (Brussels)
Belgium 15 contributions 41445 visits
The Court of Appeal of England and Wales has ruled that restitutionary damages are not generally available in antitrust cases and that, in most cases, compensatory damages provide adequate remedies. Background In 2001, the European Commission adopted a decision finding that a number of (...)

The UK High Court rules that restitution damages are not an available remedy in antitrust cases, nor will an account of a defendant’s profits be appropriate (Devenish / Sanofi-Aventis)
Baker McKenzie (London)
United Kingdom 7 contributions 21403 visits
Background The present case involves "follow on" claims for compensation in respect of damage suffered as a result of the vitamins cartel, which was famously subject to a Commission decision in 2001. The Commission found that notwithstanding the number of producers involved in eight (...)

The Spanish Competition Authority fines four saving banks for market sharing and coordination of commercial conditions (Caja Vital / BBK / Kutxa / CAN)
Lenz & Staehelin (Zurich)
Switzerland 2 contributions 8877 visits
Introduction On 18 October 2007 the Spanish competition authority, Comisión Nacional de Competencia (CNC), sanctioned four saving banks (cajas de ahorro) with a total fine of € 24 million for participating in a cartel involved in sharing markets and coordinating commercial conditions. The (...)

The Spanish Competition Authority imposes fines of €24 million on regional saving banks for collusive agreements aimed at allocating territories and coordinating their commercial strategies (Caja Vital / BBK / Kutxa / CAN)
Hogan Lovells (Madrid)
Spain 47 contributions 92214 visits
Following the publication in the Spanish economic press in 2005 of information relating to the potential existence of a territorial market allocation agreement between certain regional savings banks in the North-East of Spain, the Spanish Servicio de Defensa de la Competencia ("the Service") (...)

The Spanish Competition Authority fines three savings banks for market sharing, information exchange, and coordination agreements (Caja Vital / BBK / Kutxa / CAN)
Compass Lexecon (Madrid)
Spain 4 contributions 9191 visits
Last October, the National Competition Commission (CNC, hereafter) published its Decision to impose a € 24 million fine to the savings banks from the Basque country and Navarra for maintaining a collusive agreement consisting on market sharing, information exchange and the coordination of (...)

The EU Commission concludes that the French national interbank network association infringed Article 81 of the Treaty (Groupement des Cartes Bancaires)
European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 8 contributions 8814 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 4 contributions 2604 visits
"Decision against the Groupement des Cartes Bancaires (CB)"* I. Overview In its decision of 17 October 2007, the Commission concluded that the Groupement des Cartes Bancaires (CB) had infringed Article 81 of the Treaty. The Groupement des Cartes Bancaires (CB) (‘the Groupement‘) manages (...)

The Paris Court of Appeal upholds an NCA’s decision accepting commitments in its first decision on commitments procedure (Bijourama / Festina France)
White & Case (Paris)
France 3 contributions 12608 visits
Commitments from Festina France on its distribution agreements, accepted by the French Competition Council (Conseil de la concurrence) in a decision of 24 July 2006, are the first ones to be submitted to the Paris Court of Appeal. The Competition Council was seized by Bijourama, a jewel and (...)

The Vilnius District Administrative Court lowers the fines imposed by the Competition Authority to cartel members (School Renovations cartel / Lamberta)
Lithuanian Competition Authority (Vilnius)
Lithuania 28 contributions 102857 visits
On 11 October 2007 the Vilnius District Administrative Court (the “VDAC” or the “Court”) issued a judgment reducing the fines imposed on the members of the bid-rigging cartel in the School Renovations case . The Competition Council’s decisionin this case was challenged by all three parties (...)

The Austrian Federal Competition Authority applies for record fines amounting to EUR 88 M. against five companies in the elevator and escalator industry and applies leniency
Becker Günther Polster
Austria 8 contributions 29284 visits
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OBB (Vienna)
Austria 5 contributions 17637 visits
Background On 5 October, 2007, the Austrian Federal Competition Authority ("BWB") announced that it had applied before the Austrian Cartel Court for fines amounting to EUR 88 million against five companies active in the elevator and escalator industry. After in-depth investigations by the (...)

A Danish Court imposes fines on an association of inns and hotels, its director and its board chairman for imposing minimum prices on its members (Danske Kroer & Hoteller)
Plesner (Copenhagen)
Denmark 41 contributions 74240 visits
On 4 October 2007 the Danish District Court of Horsens found that an association of Danish inns and hotels, Danske Kroer & Hoteller, had decided to restrict competition by imposing minimum prices on its members through its bylaws. The court imposed a fine of DKK 400,000 (EUR 54,000) on (...)

The Irish National Competition Authority delivers its final report on competition for dental services in the Irish market
London School of Economics
Belgium 37 contributions 156574 visits
Introduction The Irish National Competition Authority ("NCA") delivered a report on competition in the dental sector on 3 October 2007. This report forms part of a wider study on eight professions in the construction, legal and medical sectors of the economy conducted by the NCA following a (...)

The EU Commission fines €10.2 million two-card network operators for refusing to admit another bank as a member (Visa International / Visa Europe / Morgan Stanley)
European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 8 contributions 8814 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 4 contributions 2604 visits
Commission fines Visa International and Visa Europe for not admitting Morgan Stanley Bank as a member I. Overview On 3 October 2007 the Commission fined Visa International and Visa Europe (‘Visa‘) €10.2 million for refusing to admit Morgan Stanley Bank (a UK bank) as a member of Visa (...)

The Paris Court of Appeals upholds the French Competition Authority’s decision on the railway laying and maintenance cartel but reduces fines (SNCF / ETF / SPTV)
Simmons & Simmons (Paris)
France 27 contributions 58840 visits
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Hewlett Packard (Boulogne-Billancourt)
France 30 contributions 90054 visits
On 2 October 2007, the Paris Court of Appeals (the "Court of Appeals") upheld a decision issued by the Conseil de la concurrence (the "Competition Council") in Decision n° 06-D-15 dated 14 June 2006 relating to practices implemented in the railway laying and maintenance sector. In this (...)

The OECD holds a roundtable on trade associations
OECD - Competition Division (Paris)
France 313 contributions 1369090 visits
Key documents: Executive Summary with key findings, Detailled Summary of the discussion, Background note Executive summary, by the Secretariat Considering the discussion at the roundtable, the member country submissions, and the background paper of the Secretariat, a number of key points (...)

Unilateral Practices

 The Czech Supreme Administrative Court clarifies the notion of a single economic unit in the context of abuse of dominant position (Ceska rafinerska)
Skils (Prague)
Czech Republic 34 contributions 25973 visits
On 29 October 2007, the Czech Supreme Administrative Court quashed a previous decision of the Regional Court in Brno which cancelled a decision of the Chairman of the Office for the Protection of Competition (the “Office”) imposing a fine of CZK 6,000,000 on Ceska Rafinerska for an abuse of (...)

The Polish Competition Authority fines €5 million an undertaking operating radio and TV terrestrial transmission stations for price discrimination in favour of commercial broadcasters against public broadcasters (TP Emitel)
Greenberg Traurig (Warsaw)
Poland 29 contributions 80096 visits
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UNIMOT (Zawadzkie)
Poland 12 contributions 34815 visits
On 25 October 2007, the Polish President of the Office for Competition and Consumer Protection (“OCCP") fined TP Emitel, a subsidiary of the Telekomunikacja Polska (part of the France Telecom group) for price discrimination against public broadcasters. The amount of the fine reached almost 5 (...)

The Polish Competition Authority fines €5M an abuse of dominant position on the market of distribution of radio and TV signal by (TP EmiTel)
COMPER Fornalczyk i Wspólnicy (Lodz)
Poland 2 contributions 8304 visits
The President of the Polish Competition Authority (Office for Competition and Consumers Protection) on 25th October, 2007 issued the decision in which TP EmiTel sp. z o.o. (hereinafter: TP EmiTel) was found guilty of abusing its dominant position on the market of dispersion of TV and radio (...)

The German Federal Cartel Office defines the criteria of “not merely occasionally” in respect of selling below cost prices as an abuse of superior market power (Netto)
Hengeler Mueller (Düsseldorf)
Germany 16 contributions 48511 visits
I. Background The decision of the FCO is based on Sec. 20 (4) German Act against Restraints of Competition (ARC). At the time of the decision, on 25 October 2007, the provision prohibited undertakings with superior market power in relation to small and medium-sized competitors to use their (...)

The Czech Regional Court quashes the Competition Authority’s decision having imposed the highest fine ever to a single undertaking for anticompetitive practices on the natural gas wholesale market (RWE Transgas)
Dentons (Prague)
Czech Republic 4 contributions 18557 visits
On 22 October 2007 the Regional Court in Brno quashed the second instance decision of the Czech Office for Protection of Competition (the “Office”) in the case of RWE Transgas a.s. (“RWE Transgas”), after RWE Transgas challenged the Office’s decision by an action at the court. The Office (...)

The Polish Competition Authority conducts antitrust proceedings against the Polish authors’ association in order to stop alleged monopolist practices (ZAiKS)
Kochanski (Warsaw)
Poland 6 contributions 17907 visits
Background For several years now, the Polish Office of Competition and Consumer Protection is carefully monitoring the practices of the copyright protection organizations and, as a result, there are few cases pending nowadays related to the competition protection within the copyright market. (...)

The French Competition Authority fines an Internet operator for implementing discriminatory practices on the high-speed internet access market (France Télécom / Wanadoo)
French Competition Authority (Paris)
France 741 contributions 394515 visits
After a negotiated settlement with the company, the Conseil de la concurrence imposes €45m fine on France Telecom for having hindered the development of internet access providers competing with its Wanadoo subsidiary* Following the referrals by T-Online and Liberty Surf companies, (...)

The French Competition Authority inflicts a 45 Million € fine on the telecommunications incumbent for abusive discrimination and denigration on the ADSL high-speed Internet access market and specifies the notion of repeated infringements (France Télécom / Wanadoo)
Concurrences (London)
United Kingdom 4 contributions 11044 visits
The facts In the beginning of 2000, the incumbent telecommunications operator France Telecom has tried to dominate the emerging market of high-speed Internet access. Some of these attempts lead to important decisions from both the French Competition Council (the “Conseil”) and the European (...)

The French Competition Authority accepts commitments in order to address competition concerns regarding the remuneration of press distributors (NMPP / SAEM-TP)
French Competition Authority (Paris)
France 741 contributions 394515 visits
The Conseil de la concurrence considers that the new complementary remuneration system proposed by NMPP meets the competition concerns.* In a decision of 9 October 2007, the Conseil de la concurrence has accepted the commitments taken by Nouvelles Messageries de Presse Parisienne (NMPP) and (...)

The French Competition Authority accepts commitments to address competition concerns in the TV services broadcasting sector (TDF)
French Competition Authority (Paris)
France 741 contributions 394515 visits
TV services Broadcasting: The commitments obtained by the Conseil de la concurrence from TDF will facilitate the entrusting of programme broadcasting by analogical channels to competing technical operators.* Emettel’s complaint : market foreclosure by TDF At end 2006, Emettel company had (...)

The OECD holds a roundtable on facilitating practices in oligopolies
OECD - Competition Division (Paris)
France 313 contributions 1369090 visits
Key documents: Executive Summary with key findings, Detailled Summary of the discussion, Background note Executive summary, by the Secretariat Considering the discussion at the roundtable and the written submissions, several key points emerge: 1) The concept of “facilitating practices” (...)

The EU Commission closes proceedings against US chipset manufacturer for alleged abuse of dominance in the mobile phone technology sector (Qualcomm)
European University Institute (Florence)
Italy 49 contributions 104866 visits
"The Last Hundred Days Strategy"- Is the Qualcomm Case Over?* Milton Friedman and his wife Rose Friedman are known for having theorized that recently elected governments generally enjoy a period of political immunity following elections, which allows them to push reforms, including tough (...)

The EU Commission examines a licensing agreement for chipset technology for mobile phones (Nokia / Qualcomm)
Van Bael & Bellis (Brussels)
Belgium 154 contributions 52624 visits
Nokia and Qualcomm have entered into a 15-year licensing agreement for chipset technology for mobile phones, giving Nokia a licence to use Qualcomm‘s patents in its handsets and certain infrastructure equipment. Nokia has also agreed «not to use any of its patents against Qualcomm«, meaning (...)

Mergers

 The EU Commission clears, subject to divestment, an acquisition in the baby food and baby milk products (Danone / Numico)
JG Associates (Brussels)
193 contributions 63231 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 148 contributions 49900 visits
Mergers: Main developments between 1 September and 31 December 2007* On 31 October the Commission approved the proposed acquisition of the Dutch company Numico by the French group Danone. Both companies are major suppliers of baby food and baby milk products. Approval was granted subject (...)

The Latvian Competition Council clears an acquisition in the market of licensing of pay TV channels and licensing of movies and broadcasts for home entertainment (Sparrowhawk Holdings / Universal Pictures Holdings)
Kronbergs & Čukste
Latvia 5 contributions 2251 visits
On October 31, 2007, the Latvian Competition Council adopted a decision clearing the acquisition of Sparrowhawk Holdings Limited (hereafter the “Sparrowhawk”) by Universal Pictures Holdings UK Limited (hereafter the “Universal”) pursuant to Article 15 of the Latvian Competition Law. (...)

The Spanish Competition Authorities clears a merger - referred back from the EC Commission - in the hard discount large retail distribution sector and adopts its first commitment decision under the new competition regime (DIA/Plus Supermercados)
Herbert Smith Freehills (Madrid)
Spain 22 contributions 31625 visits
The Spanish Competition Authorities (Comisión Nacional de Competencia) clears on 3 September 2007 the acquisition of Plus Supermercados (a company previously belonging to the Tengelmann Group, which operates 251 hard -discount stores in Spain) by DIA. The acquirer is a wholly-owned subsidiary (...)

The British Office of Fair Trading approves in phase I without remedies another acquisition by Britain’s number one food retailer (Tesco/Kwik Save Stores)
Womble Bond Dickinson (Washington)
United States 5 contributions 16156 visits
On 30 October 2007, the British Office of Fair Trading (“OFT”) announced its Decision on the proposed acquisition, notified by merger notice, by Tesco Stores Limited (“Tesco”) of two former Kwik Save Stores. The Decision came on the day of the OFT’s statutory deadline for deciding whether to (...)

The Dutch Competition Authority clears a merger in the press sector subject to divestment of free local papers (Mecom -Wegener)
Booking.com
Netherlands 15 contributions 39024 visits
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Bahl & Co (Amsterdam)
Netherlands 15 contributions 39024 visits
The operation The activities of Mecom and Wegener mainly involve the publishing of national and regional newspapers as well as free local papers. Mecom will acquire 75 % of Wegener’s share capital (Para. 5). The market(s) The NMa mainly assessed the effects of the proposed merger in (...)

The EU Commission clears, subject to divestiture, an acquisition in the paper distribution sector (Antalis / MAP)
JG Associates (Brussels)
193 contributions 63231 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 148 contributions 49900 visits
Mergers: Main developments between 1 September and 31 December 2007* On 24 October the Commission cleared the proposed acquisition of the Dutch paper merchant MAP, belonging to the Finnish M-Real group, by the French paper merchant Antalis. The Commission’s clearance was granted subject to (...)

The EU Commission clears, subject to divestiture, an acquisition in the glass-fibre reinforcements sector (Owens Corning / Saint Gobain Vitrotex)
JG Associates (Brussels)
193 contributions 63231 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 148 contributions 49900 visits
Mergers: Main developments between 1 September and 31 December 2007* On 24 October the Commission cleared the proposed acquisition of the glass-fibre reinforcements and composite fabrics businesses (‘Vitrotex‘) of the French Compagnie de Saint-Gobain (Saint-Gobain) by Owens Corning of the (...)

The German Bundeskartellamt clears two downstream acquisitions of shares in the energy market subject to the divestiture of a minority stake (RWE / SWKN)
Baker McKenzie (Berlin)
Germany 34 contributions 83051 visits
The operation On 30 July 2007 RWE AG (“RWE”) on behalf of RWE Rhein-Ruhr AG (“RWE Rhein-Ruhr”) notified the Bundeskartellamt of two proposed transactions. The first, was for RWE Rhein-Ruhr to acquire a stake of 25% in Stadtwerke Krefeld Neuss AG & Co. KG (“SWKN”). The second (...)

The Portuguese Competition Authority approves a merger in the fuel sector subject, inter alia, to termination of exclusivity clause (Bensaude / Nicolau Sousa Lima)
Gómez-Acebo & Pombo (Lisbon)
Portugal 10 contributions 39569 visits
On 23 October 2007, the Portuguese Competition Authority (the “AdC”) adopted a merger control decision according to Law 18/2003 of 11 June (the Portuguese Competition Act), providing clearance to the envisaged acquisition of sole control over the company NSL - Nicolau Sousa Lima, SGPS, S.A. (...)

The Portuguese Competition Authority clears a merger in the fuel retail market, amongs others, with remedies, including the cancellation of exclusivity clauses (Bensaude / Nicolau Sousa Lima)
PLMJ (Lisbon)
Portugal 18 contributions 39218 visits
The operation The operation consists in the acquisition of sole control of the company NSL - Nicolau Sousa Lima, SGPS, S.A. (NSL) by the Bensaude Group, through the company Bencom - Armazenamento e Comércio de Combustíveis S.A. (“Bencom”) (para. 1.1). The markets According to the PCA’s (...)

The Icelandic Competition Authority cleared a merger in the agricultural products market, subject to remedies, mostly concerning restrictions on marketing and sales activities (Fodurblandan/KHB-Midbae)
PwC (Reykjavik)
Iceland 8 contributions 18425 visits
The operation On 23 May 2007, Fodurblandan (FB) notified the Icelandic Competition Authority (ICA) that FB had acquired the goodwill, product stock and liquid assets of KHB-Midbae (KHB).FB is a company that manufactures and sells various agriculture products. KHB sells only animal feeds. On (...)

The Icelandic Competition Authority clears a joint venture in the retail electricity market subject to remedies, including the divestiture of a strategic stake (Landsvirkjun / Orkusalan)
PwC (Reykjavik)
Iceland 8 contributions 18425 visits
The operation On 22 August 2006 the ICA was notified that Orkusalan had been founded by RARIK (36%), Orkubú Vestfjarda (OV) (36%) and Landsvirkjun (28%). The purpose of the new company was to buy, sell and produce electricity and manage real estate and connected businesses. (para. 2) (...)

The Hungarian Competition Authority conditionally clears a merger in the food sector and imposes a fine for late notification (Bács-Tak Takarmánygyártó és Forgalmazó/Kiskunhalasi Baromfifeldolgozó)
Lakatos, Köves (Budapest)
Hungary 15 contributions 34524 visits
The operation Bács-Tak Kft is owned by two private persons (István Kiss and Zoltán Balogh) and its main activities are producing and distributing feed for poultry and breeding duck and broiler chicken. The main activity of Kiskunhalasi Zrt. is waterfowl (duck and goose) processing. One of (...)

The EU Commission clears, subject to divestiture, an acquisition in the tobacco industry (Imperial Tobacco / Altadis)
JG Associates (Brussels)
193 contributions 63231 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 148 contributions 49900 visits
Mergers: Main developments between 1 September and 31 December 2007* On 18 October the Commission cleared the proposed acquisition of the Franco-Spanish company Altadis by Imperial Tobacco of the UK. The Commission’s decision is conditional on the divestment of a number of tobacco brands (...)

The EU Commission conditionally clears a merger in the book publishing industry (Egmont / Bonnier Danish books)
JG Associates (Brussels)
193 contributions 63231 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 148 contributions 49900 visits
Mergers: Main developments between 1 September and 31 December 2007* On 15 October the Commission cleared the proposed acquisition of the Danish book publishing company Bonnier Forlagene A/S, belonging to the Swedish media group Bonnier, by Egmont of Denmark, also a media group. The (...)

The US DOJ fines fashion brand licensor $550,000 for failure to produce internal competitive materials with its pre-merger clearance filing (Iconix)
Sidley Austin (Washington)
United States 14 contributions 5539 visits
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WilmerHale (Washington)
United States 13 contributions 5897 visits
The Justice Department announced yesterday that the fashion brand licensor Iconix Brand Group has agreed to pay a $550,000 fine for failure to produce internal competitive materials, known as "4(c) documents," with its premerger clearance filing for its acquisition of the Rocawear clothing (...)

The German Federal Cartel Office clears a merger setting up a joint electronic platform for trade in secondary gas transport capacities, making further efforts to establish competitive structures in the energy sector (VNG / Trac-x / EWE / E.ON / Thyssengas / APX B)
Gleiss Lutz (Munich)
Germany 28 contributions 49001 visits
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Milbank (Munich)
Germany 28 contributions 49001 visits
On 12 October 2007, the German Federal Cartel Office cleared a merger in the energy sector. The German companies Thyssengas GmbH (Thyssengas), E.ON Gastransport AG & Co. KG (EGT) and EWE AG (EWE) planned to acquire shares in trac-x Transport Capacity Exchange GmbH (Trac-x), the provider of (...)

The EU Commission conditionally clears a merger in the human and animal healthcare sector (Schering-Plough / Organon BioSciences)
JG Associates (Brussels)
193 contributions 63231 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 148 contributions 49900 visits
Mergers: Main developments between 1 September and 31 December 2007* On 11 October the Commission cleared the proposed acquisition of Organon BS of the Netherlands, a subsidiary of Akzo Nobel active worldwide in human and animal health, by the global pharmaceutical company Schering-Plough (...)

The Turkish Competition Authority clears an acquisition in the lime market subject to the limitation of the non-compete obligation (Oztüre / Carmeuse)
Esin (Istanbul)
Turkey 51 contributions 94286 visits
The operation LVI Holding NV (“LVI”) controls Carmeuse’s all of the shares and its subsidiary Calsipar SA’s (“Calsipar”) 99,9% of the shares. LVI and its affiliates own facilities in Holland, Belgium, France, Luxemburg, Italy, Sweden, Turkey, Gana and USD which are active in lime and (...)

The Latvian Competition Authority clears a merger in the alcoholic beverages distribution sector subject to remedies including granting access to production and information (AV&D)
Cobalt Legal (Riga)
Latvia 24 contributions 43711 visits
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Cobalt Legal (Riga)
Latvia 20 contributions 35503 visits
The operation On 8 June 2007 the Competition Council received a merger notification from S.P.I. Worldwide Trade Limited (hereinafter - S.P.I.), AV&D SIA and Interlat SIA (hereinafter - the Notification) on a merger between S.P.I. and AV&D SIA and Interlat SIA. S.P.I. had a decisive (...)

The EU Commission conditionally approves a merger in the banking sector (Fortis / ABN AMRO)
DG Economic and Financial Affairs-ECFIN (Brussels)
Belgium 65 contributions 33019 visits
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European Union Intellectual Property Office (Alicante)
Spain 3 contributions 6339 visits
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Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (The Hague)
Netherlands 1 contribution 5374 visits
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Fortis/ABN AMRO: When do bank mergers raise competition concerns?* On 3 October 2007, the Commission cleared the acquisition of certain assets of the Dutch banking group ABN AMRO by the Belgo-Dutch financial services group Fortis subject to divestiture commitments. The acquired assets (...)

The EU Commission clears the creation of a joint venture combining recorded music businesses of two leading companies (Sony / BMG)
JG Associates (Brussels)
193 contributions 63231 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 148 contributions 49900 visits
"Mergers: Main developments between 1 September and 31 December 2007"* In October the Commission granted regulatory approval to the creation of Sony BMG, a joint venture combining the recorded music businesses of Sony and Bertelsmann, after concluding that it did not have sufficiently strong (...)

The EU Commission conditionally clears a merger in the financial services sector (Fortis / ABN AMRO)
JG Associates (Brussels)
193 contributions 63231 visits
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European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
Belgium 148 contributions 49900 visits
Mergers: Main developments between 1 September and 31 December 2007* On 3 October the Commission cleared the proposed acquisition of certain assets of the Dutch banking group ABN AMRO by the Belgo-Dutch financial services group Fortis. The Commission’s decision was granted subject to the (...)

The OECD holds a roundtable on managing complex mergers
OECD - Competition Division (Paris)
France 313 contributions 1369090 visits
Executive summary, by the Secretariat Considering the discussion at the roundtable and the member country submissions a number of key points emerge: (1) The assessment of mergers has become increasingly complex, as agencies confront challenging analytical issues, complex contractual (...)

State Aid

 The Cyprus Commissioner for State Aid Control authorises the amendment of the national legislation concerning aid towards the payment of agricultural insurance premiums, finding that it complies with EC Reg. N°1857/2006 (Aid towards the payment of insurance premiums)
Queen Mary University of London
United Kingdom 30 contributions 81640 visits
Factual Background In 1977 Cyprus introduced specific legislation, setting up the legal framework concerning the system of compulsory agricultural insurance and the granting of State aid through the subsidization of the insurance premium. Given that this legislation had been enacted before (...)

The Italian Regional Administrative Court of Piedmont holds that the decisions of local authorities to confer the management of the service without any invitation to tender do not breach State aid rules if specific conditions are met (Municipality of San Mauro Torinese)
EUJUS (Rome)
Italy 16 contributions 27749 visits
Factual background The applicant was a municipality located in the Region of Piedmont. Pursuant to Regional Law No. 24/2002, providing that the waste disposal service shall be managed by means of compulsory consortia managed by Municipalities, the applicant joined the Consorzio di Bacino (...)

The Portuguese Supreme Administrative Court receives a preliminary ruling from the EU Court of Justice on State aid case in the public transport field after asking the Court whether the grant by a Member State of compensation payments to transport undertakings holding a public service concession constitutes State aid (Antrop)
New University of Lisboa - Faculty of Law
Portugal 1 contribution 1821 visits
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University of Coimbra - Faculty of Law
Portugal 1 contribution 1821 visits
Brief description of the facts and legal issues Parties: The applicant: Associação Nacional de Transportadores Rodoviários de Pesados de Passageiros (hereinafter referred to as "Antrop") and Others; The defendant: Conselho de Ministros, Companhia Carris de Ferro de Lisboa SA ("Carris"), (...)

The Hellenic State Council rejects allegations that a misestimation of costs in a public tender amounted to State aid to the winning bidder (Bus Operator)
Queen Mary University of London
United Kingdom 30 contributions 81640 visits
Facts On 21.07.2005, the prefectural committee for education and youth of the prefectural administration of Serres (Serres being a prefecture in the north of Greece and in particular in the geographical region of Macedonia) adopted a decision, authorizing the terms of an open public tender (...)

Procedures

 The European Commission publishes a legislative proposal enabling cartel defendants to enter into settlement discussions with the Commission in exchange for earlier certainty about the level of fines
WilmerHale (Brussels)
Belgium 6 contributions 2186 visits
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8 contributions 8567 visits
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WilmerHale (Washington)
United States 7 contributions 2923 visits
The Commission has published a legislative proposal to allow it to deal more rapidly with cartel cases. The proposal would enable cartel defendants to enter into settlement discussions with the Commission in exchange for earlier certainty about the level of fines and a yet unspecified (...)

The Polish Competition Authority considers that a practice capable of affecting trade between Member States may be deemed as an aggravating factor in the assessment of anticompetitive practices (PZU Życie)
European Commission - DG COMP (Brussels)
France 37 contributions 155625 visits
It is well known that since 1st May 2004 and according to Article 3(1) of the Regulation n° 1/2003 the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (hereafter: the OCCP President), as the Polish National Authority, cannot apply only national law to practices prohibited by (...)

The Spanish Government presents a proposal for an implementing regulation of the Spanish leniency program and makes it subject to public consultation
DG TRADE (Brussels)
Belgium 30 contributions 119530 visits
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Garrigues (Brussels)
Belgium 28 contributions 104342 visits
Spanish legal community has pleaded, at least since 2000, for the implementation of a comprehensive Spanish leniency program. The existence of such instrument has been regarded as a condition for a proper coordination between the Commission’s activity and that of the Spanish antitrust (...)

The Belgian Competition Authority adopts a new notice on immunity from fines and reduction of fines in cartel cases in order to align the Belgian leniency programme with the EU model
Sheppard Mullin (Brussels)
France 396 contributions 672858 visits
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General Court of the European Union (Luxembourg)
France 1 contribution 4493 visits
Background When a company applies for leniency to one competition authority (a national competition authority or the European Commission) this application is not taken into consideration by the other competition authorities. The company therefore has to complete multiple applications to (...)

The UK High Court rules that exemplary damages are not available to claimants bringing actions against cartellists that have already been fined by the EU Commission, even if their fine has been commuted due to an immunity or leniency application (Devenish Nutrition / Sanofi-Aventis)
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (London)
United Kingdom 2 contributions 10754 visits
Exemplary damages are not available to claimants bringing actions against cartelists that have already been fined by the European Commission, even if their fine has been commuted due to an immunity or leniency application. Similarly, restitutionary relief or an account of profits are most (...)

The UK High Court of Justice rejects a claim for exemplary damages following an infringement decision by the EU Commission (Devenish / Sanofi-Aventis)
DWF (London)
2 contributions 3367 visits
Introduction and Background to the claim In November 2001 the European Commission adopted a decision that held that a number of vitamin manufacturers had entered into worldwide price-fixing agreements (cartels) in respect of various vitamins in breach of Article 81 EC Treaty and therefore (...)

The UK Competition Appeal Tribunal clarifies limitation period for follow-on claims lodged with the Tribunal (Emerson Electric / Morgan Crucible)
University of East Anglia (Norwich)
United Kingdom 13 contributions 26428 visits
I. Background On 09 February 2007 a claim for damages under section 47A Competition Act (follow-on action) was lodged with the Competition Appeal Tribunal (hereafter CAT). The defendant Morgan Crucible Company plc (“Morgan Crucible”) and the proposed defendants Schunk GmbH and Schunk (...)

The Hungarian Competition Authority issued a notice on fines setting in cases regarding the unfair manipulation of consumer choice
University of East Anglia (Norwich)
United Kingdom 1 contribution 2688 visits
In 2007 the GVH issued a Notice on the methods establishing the appropriate amount of fines for companies that unfairly manipulate consumer choice Although the GVH’s fining practice in antitrust cases had already been covered by an earlier notice there has been a need to systematically (...)

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit holds that parties to an arbitration agreement that prohibited joinder of jointly and severally liable defendants did not alter any substantive right under the Sherman or Clayton Acts (Cotton Yarn Antitrust Litigation)
White & Case (Washington)
United States 3 contributions 11598 visits
In In re Cotton Yarn Antitrust Litigation, (505 F.3d 274 (4th Cir. 2007) the Fourth Circuit held inter alia that parties to an arbitration agreement that prohibited joinder of jointly and severally liable defendants did not alter any substantive right under the Sherman or Clayton Acts so as to (...)

The EU General Court provides guidance on the presumption of innocence and quashes the Commission’s decision for publishing a non-confidential version of a decision on a cartel in the chemical industry (Pergan Hilfsstoffe)
General Court of the European Union (Luxembourg)
Luxembourg 61 contributions 29534 visits
THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE ANNULS THE DECISION REFUSING CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT FOR THE PUBLISHED VERSION OF A COMMISSION DECISION ON CARTELS* For the Commission to be entitled to disclose to the public the details of an undertaking’s infringement in respect of which proceedings are time (...)

Regulatory

 The new German energy regime of incentive regulation setting total revenue caps in relation to network operator’s access charges enters into force on 1 January 2009
Hengeler Mueller (Düsseldorf)
Germany 16 contributions 48511 visits
I. Background and legal framework The New German Energy Industry Act 2005 (EnWG) from 13 July 2005 introduced a regulated third party access together with the implementation of regulatory authorities for the energy sector. Therefore, since 2006 the Federal Network Agency (FNA - (...)

The French competition authority seeks a comprehensive reform of current regulation of commercial facilities (Opinion N° 07-A-12)
European Commission
Belgium 1 contribution 3304 visits
Background On October 11, 2007, the French competition authority (Conseil de la concurrence), has issued its opinion on propositions prepared by the Committee for the modernization of commercial facilities regulation headed by M. Renaud Dutreil. This Committee had been put in place after the (...)

The OECD holds a roundtable on refusals to deal
OECD - Competition Division (Paris)
France 313 contributions 1369090 visits
Executive summary, by the Secretariat 1. From the issues paper, the country submissions, and the discussion at the roundtable, the following points emerge: (1). The term “refusal to deal” (or “refusal to supply”) describes a situation in which one firm refuses to sell to another firm, is (...)

The OECD holds a roundtable on taxi services regulation and competition
OECD - Competition Division (Paris)
France 313 contributions 1369090 visits
Key documents: Executive Summary with key findings, Detailled Summary of the discussion, Background note Executive summary, by the Secretariat In light of the written submissions, the background note and the oral discussion, the following points emerge: (1) Restricting the number of (...)