What is the de minimis rule competition law?
From the Competition Law perspective, “de minimis” may be defined as some agreements limiting competition which would be subject to examination under normal circumstances but are not taken into account in the application of Competition Law rules, since their effects on the market are insignificant.
What is the de minimis notice?
Under the de minimis notice (the Notice), agreements which may have as their effect the prevention, restriction or distortion of competition within the internal market will not have an appreciable restriction of competition where the market shares of the companies involved fall below certain thresholds.
What is a block exemption competition law?
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The Block Exemption Regulation is an exemption in a business line or industry, which debars organizations in the industry from some business activities in order to create competition.
How is EU competition law enforced?
The Commission is the principal enforcer of the EU’s competition rules. It has the power and responsibility to investigate suspected anticompetitive conduct, to issue prohibition decisions, to impose fines, and to conclude binding agreements with companies.
What is the vertical block exemption regulation?
The VBER designates certain clauses that disqualify the entire agreement for exemption (“black-listed” clauses or “hardcore restrictions”) and other clauses that are themselves disqualified but not the rest of the agreement (“grey-listed” clauses).
What’s the main source of EU competition law on agreements?
European competition law today derives mostly from articles 101 to 109 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), as well as a series of Regulations and Directives. Four main policy areas include: Cartels, or control of collusion and other anti-competitive practices, under article 101 TFEU.
How effective is EU competition policy?
Undoubtedly, the EU has one of the strongest competition policy systems worldwide. The policy also applies to non-EU companies operating on the single market. Competition has been found to contribute to long-term economic growth.
What is vertical regulation?
Vertical agreements are agreements entered into between two or more undertakings operating at different levels of the production or distribution chain, and relating to the conditions under which the parties may purchase, sell or resell certain goods or services.
What is the purpose of EU competition policy?
The main objective of the EU competition rules is to enable the proper functioning of the EU’s internal market as a key driver for the well-being of EU citizens, businesses and society as a whole.
What are the EU competition policies?
The aim of EU competition policy is to safeguard the correct functioning of the single market. EU antitrust policy prohibits agreements between two or more independent market operators if they restrict competition. Furthermore, it prohibits abuse of a dominant market position by one or more undertakings.
Why is EU competition policy important?
European competition law is the competition law in use within the European Union. It promotes the maintenance of competition within the European Single Market by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies to ensure that they do not create cartels and monopolies that would damage the interests of society.