Contacter

Simon Vande Walle

University of Tokyo

Professor

Simon Vande Walle is a professor at the University of Tokyo. He was a case handler at the European Commission - DG Comp, in the Mergers - Telecoms, IT and Media unit. Previously, he was a research fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science at the University of Tokyo. He obtained his doctoral degree in law from Kyushu University, Japan, and, prior to that, practiced as a lawyer at the Brussels office of Linklaters from 2003 until 2008. He is originally from Belgium and studied law at Leuven Catholic University, Belgium (LL.B., LL.M.), Université Jean-Moulin Lyon III, France (Erasmus), Kyushu University, Japan (LL.M., LL.D.) and Georgetown University Law Center, U.S. (LL.M.). He is the author of Private Antitrust Litigation in the European Union and Japan – A Comparative Perspective (Maklu Publishers, 2013). A full list of publications can be found at http://www.simonvandewalle.eu

Distinctions

Nominee, 2019 Antitrust Writing Awards : Academic, Private Enforcement

Nominee, 2014 Antitrust Writing Awards : Academic, Asian Antitrust

Nominee, 2013 Antitrust Writing Awards : Academic, Economics

Contacter

Auteur associé

Tadashi Shiraishi

University of Tokyo

Japon 2 contributions 1259 visites

Articles

3820 Bulletin

Simon Vande Walle Market sharing : An overview of EU and national case law

16 août 2023 749

Are market sharing cartels still “an endemic feature of European business activity” ? Which sectors are particularly prone to bid rigging ? What are the enforcement trends in relation to market sharing cartels ? The panorama that emerges from the cases in this Special Issue sheds some light on these questions. The period covered runs from 2017 to June 2023. During that period, competition authorities across Europe have uncovered a remarkable number of market sharing cartels, including bid rigging schemes. The cases lay bare several noteworthy trends and tendencies. This foreword reflects on some of these trends and the number of cases.

Pablo Serrano, Simon Vande Walle, Szabolcs Lorincz The EU Commission clears an acquisition between two leading global manufacturers of threat detection equipment subject to remedies (Smiths / Morpho Detection)

19 janvier 2017 159

SMITHS GROUP / MORPHO DETECTION : MAINTAINING SECURITY THROUGH INNOVATION * In a nutshell : Smiths’ acquisition of Morpho Detection brought together two leading suppliers of the equipment used to detect explosives and narcotics. This equipment is omnipresent at security checks in airports (...)

Luca Manigrassi, Simon Vande Walle The EU Commission approves the acquisition of a mobile network operator by a virtual mobile network operator, subject to fix-it-first remedies (Liberty Global / BASE)

4 février 2016 2201

LIBERTY GLOBAL / BASE : FIWING IT FIRST IN THE BELGIAN MOBILE MARKET* In a nutshell : Liberty Global/BASE entailed the acquisition of a mobile network operator by a mobile virtual network operator. The transaction prompted an in-depth investigation and was ultimately cleared with a (...)

Simon Vande Walle The Tokyo District Court awards damages to the Japanese State in a bid-rigging case concerning the supply of jet fuel (Kosumo Sekiyu)

27 juin 2011 462

I. Introduction In a judgment of 27 June 2011, the Tokyo District Court ordered nine oil companies to pay a total of 8.4 billion yen (104 million dollars at the time) to the Japanese State in restitution. The oil companies had violated the Japanese Antimonopoly Act by engaging in bid-rigging (...)

Simon Vande Walle The Japanese High Court of Tokyo dismisses a predatory pricing lawsuit in the market for door-to-door delivery service (Yamato Unyu / Nippon Yūsei Kōsha / Yūbin Jigyō)

28 novembre 2007 249

The views expressed in this case summary are those of the author, not those of any organisation. Yamato, Japan’s largest door-to-door delivery service, sought injunctive relief against the low prices of a competitor, Japan Post. In a judgment of 19 January 2006, the Tokyo District Court (...)

3803 Revue

Simon Vande Walle Vertical effects : The General Court of the European Union confirms the European Commission’s analysis of vertical effects in relation to a merger between two Polish oil refiners (Polwax)

14 juin 2023 61

This General Court judgment rejected a third-party challenge against the European Commission’s clearance of a merger between two Polish oil refiners : KPN Orlen and Grupa Lotos. Background : the merger between two Polish oil refiners The Commission’s merger review process had been long and (...)

Simon Vande Walle Joint control : The European Commission rejects jurisdiction over a concentration in the TV broadcasting sector after finding that there would be no joint control (Iliad)

10 janvier 2022 110

Companies can consult the services of DG COMP about jurisdictional issues such as whether a particular transaction has an EU dimension. The results of these consultations normally do not become public. This decision is a rare exception. It sheds light on how to determine whether a minority (...)

Simon Vande Walle Effets anticoncurrentiels : Le Tribunal de l’Union européenne confirme l’analyse du portefeuille de créneaux effectuée par la Commission dans le cadre de deux fusions de compagnies aériennes (Polskie Linie Lotnicze / easyJet / Lufthansa / Air Berlin)

20 octobre 2021 163

Qu’en est-il du transport aérien et du contentieux des concentrations ? Les fusions dans ce secteur ont certainement apporté leur juste part à la jurisprudence sur le contrôle des fusions. Pensez à Airtours (T-342/99), easyJet (T-177/04), Ryanair (T-342/07), Niki Luftfahrt (T-162/10), (...)

Simon Vande Walle Procedural violation : The European Commission imposes a fine for failure to disclose an innovation project in the context of a merger remedy proposal (Merck / Sigma-Aldrich)

3 mai 2021 168

Companies provide a great deal of information to competition authorities during the merger review process. On occasion, they may be tempted to hide some things. In this case, Sigma-Aldrich kept an R&D project hidden, in an attempt to avoid having to transfer this project to a third party, (...)

Simon Vande Walle Clearance : The European Commission clears the acquisition of a maker of fitness trackers and smartwatches by a major online platform, subject to long-lasting behavioural remedies (Fitbit / Google)

17 décembre 2020 187

Acquisitions by large digital platforms are all the rage. Competition authorities subject these deals to stricter scrutiny than before, but, in spite of this, Big Tech companies continue to expand their ecosystems by acquiring targets left and right. Google’s acquisition of Fitbit is (...)

Catherine Prieto, Laurence Idot, Martine Behar-Touchais, Florian Bien, David Bosco, Josep M. Carpi Badia, Étienne Chantrel, Marta Giner Asins, Didier Theophile, Simon Vande Walle, Jérôme Vidal Vers un réseau européen du contrôle des concentrations

septembre 2020 1427

Réputé pour avoir institué un système de coopération particulièrement efficace pour la mise en œuvre des articles 101 et 102 TFUE, le Réseau européen de concurrence (REC) n’a pas été étendu au contrôle des concentrations. Le besoin de coopération est pourtant également ressenti en ce domaine,. (...)

Simon Vande Walle Non-collusive oligopoly gap : The General Court of the European Union annuls the decision of the European Commission’s prohibition of a four-to-three merger in the UK telecoms sector, in the first judgment to directly deal with the legal test for “gap cases” (CK Telecoms UK)

28 mai 2020 488

In May 2020, the General Court rendered its long-awaited judgment on the appeal against the Commission’s decision to prohibit Hutchison’s acquisition of O2, a deal that would have combined two of the UK’s four mobile network operators. The judgment is a resounding victory for the applicant, (...)

Simon Vande Walle Market concentration : The European Commission approves a merger leading to very high combined market shares in the chemicals sector with remedies (Synthomer / Omnova Solutions)

15 janvier 2020 160

Synthomer and Omnova may not exactly be household names, but both companies are major producers of so-called specialty chemicals. These are products such as polymers, which are ubiquitous in our everyday life, as they are used as an ingredient in various finished products, including consumer (...)

Simon Vande Walle Sole control : The Belgian Competition Authority clears a vertical merger in the audiovisual sector, subject to conditions (Telenet Group BVBA / De Vijver Media NV)

13 mai 2019 261

On 13 May 2019, the Belgian competition authority cleared Telenet’s acquisition of De Vijver Media, subject to remedies. The acquisition gave Telenet – a Belgian cable operator – sole control over De Vijver Media, a broadcaster of TV channels. TV channels are an input for cable operators, who (...)

Simon Vande Walle Commitments : The European Commission approves a telecoms merger with commitments to address unilateral horizontal effects without dominance (so-called “gap” case) (Vodafone / Liberty Global)

18 juillet 2018 778

Background The good old cable network. Originally rolled out to transmit TV channels to households in the 80s, it has become the pipe through which millions of Europeans access fast internet or “broadband”. Little wonder that cable networks are eagerly coveted by telecom companies and, when (...)