Seuil de chiffre d’affaires (concentration)

CMA sets out changes to Phase 2 merger processes* The CMA is planning to improve some aspects of its phase 2 processes as part of an evolution of how it investigates mergers. New measures to further improve operation of Phase 2 investigations Reforms offer parties even greater engagement (...)

Cooperation between Microsoft and OpenAI currently not subject to merger control* Microsoft’s involvement in and its cooperation with OpenAI is not subject to merger control in Germany. OpenAI is the company behind the AI program ChatGPT. Andreas Mundt, President of the Bundeskartellamt : (...)

On 13 November 2023, the UK Government opened a consultation on proposed changes to the National Security and Investment ( NSI ) regime, less than two years after the regime came into force. Oliver Dowden MP, the Deputy Prime Minister and formal decision-maker under the regime in his role as (...)

On 13 November 2023 the UK Government issued an interesting Call for Evidence on the scope and implementation of the UK’s National Security and Investment (NSI) regime, which governs screening of transactions on national security grounds for both foreign and UK investors. This is a very (...)

Amendment to the German Competition Act (Gesetz gegen Wettbewerbsbeschränkungen – GWB ; 11th amendment to the GWB)* After yesterday’s promulgation in the Federal Law Gazette, the modifications to the German Competition Act (GWB) provided for by the 11th amendment to the GWB have entered into (...)

The trend towards closer competition scrutiny of small acquisitions, even if these transactions do not satisfy the financial thresholds provided for by EU merger control rules or relevant national legislation, yesterday gained further traction in Belgium. The life sciences industry will take (...)

The trend towards closer competition scrutiny of small acquisitions, even if these transactions do not satisfy the financial thresholds provided for by EU merger control rules or relevant national legislation, yesterday gained further traction in the Netherlands. The life sciences industry (...)

In brief The first reading of the Significant Investments Review Bill ("Bill") took place in the Singapore Parliament on 6 November 2023. The Bill was introduced by the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) to ensure the continuity of critical entities. These are entities that are critical (...)

Following other countries which have tightened regulations on foreign investments in sectors sensitive to national security, Singapore has on 3 November 2023 announced the introduction of the Significant Investments Review Bill setting out a new investment screening regime which will apply (...)

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Competition recently announced key changes to its merger control notification thresholds, adding a new local nexus test and a new minimum turnover threshold for the acquired entity. This is a significant development in parallel to the GAC’s increasingly (...)

In brief On 1 November 2023, the Board of the General Authority for Competition (the "Authority") announced that new financial thresholds would apply to determine whether a transaction is reportable to the Authority. By implementing such change, the aim of the Authority is to provide (...)

Introduction The Board of Directors of the Saudi General Authority for Competition (“GAC”), in its latest meeting no. 84 dated 23 October 2023, announced new requirements for an economic concentration’s eligibility for notification before the GAC (the “Decision”). This follows the GAC’s (...)

THE MERGER IS CLEARED IN THE MARKET OF BEVERAGES PRODUCTION* The Competition Council has allowed the Netherlands company CC Beverages Holdings II B.V. to acquire 100 percent of the shares of the Finnish company Brown-Forman Finland and to acquire the sole control over it. On 11 October (...)

The Competition Review announced by the Australian Government on 23 August 2023 is well underway. A Competition Taskforce has been established, with the scope of the Review broad - extending beyond the current competition framework to include enquiring into and making recommendations on (...)

Algorithms drive much of the digital technology used in, among other things, e-commerce, communication and social media, transportation, high tech manufacturing, and advances in medical care. Alongside the brisk development of artificial intelligence and the growth of the digital or algorithmic economy, the major firms driving technological and economic change have drawn increased attention from competition authorities and consumer protection regulators around the world. Without necessarily endorsing nor rejecting any of the various policies or proposals that have occurred in recent years, this Foreword organizes and describes key legal developments covered in Concurrences that have arisen in response to the growth of the digital economy. In Part I of this Foreword, we detail some of the major legal changes or proposed changes that have targeted these new technology firms. These are the actions that have received most of the coverage in Concurrences—and likely because this is where most of the action has occurred so far in regulatory circles. In Part II, we highlight an aspect of antitrust that might become truly novel in an increasingly algorithmic economy : the targeting of antitrust law and principles to actions driven by algorithms themselves. In Part III, we sketch out the possibility that regulators themselves will need to decide whether or how to use algorithms as tools for improving governmental oversight of market activity. The transition to an algorithmic economy, in the end, not only raises new sources of concern about competition and consumer protection, but it may also provide government with new opportunities to advance the goals of fair and efficient competition.