The Turkish Competition Authority grants block exemption to a multi-category e-marketplace company after a preliminary investigation on alleged restriction of competition practices (Trendyol)

On 17 January 2023, the Turkish Competition Authority (“TCA”) announced its reasoned decision rendered as a result of the preliminary investigation that was conducted against DSM Grup Danışmanlık İletişim ve Satış Ticaret AŞ (“Trendyol”). [1] The preliminary investigation was initiated pursuant to a confidential complaint which alleged that Trendyol violated Articles 4 and 6 of Law No. 4054 on Protection of Competition (“Competition Law”) in the market for online food and supermarket order. This piece briefly explains the (i) dominance and abuse of dominance, (ii) block exemption and (iii) full-fledged investigation related assessments of the TCA in its reasoned decision . Preliminary Investigation Process and Summary of Allegations The TCA decided [2] to launch a preliminary