Wettbewerbsrecht Blog

Official Blog of the European Competition and Regulatory Law Review (CoRe)

Der CoRe Blog bietet ein Austauschformat für aktuelle Analysen der Entwicklungen im EU-Wettbewerbsrecht. Er ist der Blog-Begleiter der vierteljährlich erscheinenden, mit einem doppelten Peer-Review-Verfahren versehenen European Competition and Regulatory Law Review (CoRe). Der CoRe-Blog füllt die Lücken, die eine viermal jährlich erscheinende Zeitschrift nicht schließen kann: unmittelbare Aktualisierungen und Analysen der neuesten Entwicklungen im EU-Wettbewerbs- und Regulierungsrecht und die Möglichkeit, diese Entwicklungen über unseren Kommentarbereich direkt mit anderen Experten zu diskutieren.

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Case Digests ×

18. März 2024  |   von Daniel Mandrescu

The Apple App Store – A New Kind of Hallmark Case
competition law, abuse of dominance, apple app store, the digital markets act
After almost three years since the Commission sent Apple its statement of objections, which was significantly trimmed down, the Commission reached a finding of abuse for which it imposed a whopping fine of 1.8 billion euros. Alongside this case, Apple was also involved in an almost identical case running parallel in the Netherlands, with similar findings. Meanwhile, during these procedures, […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
16. November 2023  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

Rebutting the gatekeeper status – what does it take?
platforms, dma, gatekeepers, digital markets act, apple, google, microsoft, smasung
The deadline for appeals on the gatekeeper designation under the DMA is nearing its end.  Since the DMA imposes gatekeepers with demanding obligations, it is only natural that the potential subjects of this regulation will attempt to contest this status. What remains, however, to be clarified is what prospective gatekeepers can put forward as evidence to avoid being designated as […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
7. November 2023  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

The ACM vs. Apple AppStore – A Second Chance To Get It Right
app store, apple, abuse of dominance, platforms, ACM, art. 102 TFEU.
The Dutch case concerning the Apple App Store appears to make a (welcome) comeback. The case that started in 2019 came to a rather disappointing end in the summer of 2022 when the Dutch competition authority issued a public statement that gave the impression that it was satisfied with Apple’s adjustments to the App Store front in the Netherlands. This […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
8. März 2023  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

Requiem for an objection: the Commission drops half of its App Store case
Competition Blogs - zhiyue 7DOU5NlNIcE unsplash
On 28 February 2023, the European Commission (EC) sent Apple a new Statement of Objections (SO) ‘clarifying its concerns over App Store rules for music streaming providers’. Rather than a clarification, or an expansion of the previous SO, the new SO dropped one of the two objections—an unusual move, especially at this stage of the proceedings. When a startup shuts […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
1. April 2022  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

The French judgment on Google’s Play Store: a shift towards platform exploitation?
Competition Blogs - The French judgment on
On 28 March 2022, the Commercial Court of Paris fined Google €2 million for the imbalanced terms and conditions of its Play Store. While the fine is minimal, Google is also obliged to adapt those T&Cs, including the 30% fee—a much more far-reaching implication. Except for some news articles, the French judgment did not receive a lot of attention (which […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
18. Januar 2022  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

The Apple App Store case in the Netherlands – a potential game changer
Competition Blogs - State Aid Uncovered SM posts 35
Just before 2021 ended, Apple suffered a loss in the Netherlands where a national court in preliminary relief proceedings struck down its attempt to block the remedies imposed by the Dutch competition authority following a finding of abuse of dominance. As a result, as of last weekend, Apple is forced to accept third-party payment solutions implemented in (paid) dating apps […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
19. April 2021  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

The Commission’s Article 22 EUMR Guidance: catching killer acquisitions through the merger referral procedure?
Article 22, Merger Regulation, European Commission, Guidance, killer acquisitions, GAFAM
Over the past five years, the EU’s merger control regime has been hotly debated. The main concern driving the debate has been the intensive acquisition activity in the tech and pharmaceutical sectors. However, many of those acquisitions escape the jurisdictional thresholds of the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR) and therefore cannot be reviewed by the European Commission (EC). On 26 March […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
3. Dezember 2020  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

Why you (often) don’t need the essential facility doctrine in the digital economy? – Interpreting Lithuanian Railways and Slovak Telekom
Competition Blogs - problem 4612945 1280
The insights from Lithuanian Railways and Slovak Telekom may have serious implications for the application of the Oscar Bronner case law in the future. These insights may prove, however, to have the most value in the digital economy where it would appear that the essential facility doctrine might often not even be needed – not even in the case of […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
22. September 2020  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

Epic v Apple (2): market power and foreclosure in the app distribution market(s)
Epic, Fortnite, Apple, battle royale, competition law, antitrust, district court, monopolization, monopoly, essential facilities, refusal to supply, tying, abuse of dominance
Epic’s battle against Apple has been extensively covered in media in the past month. This attention is undoubtedly due to Epic’s explicit move against Apple’s terms and conditions as well as Apple’s fierce reaction to cut all ties with Epic. Epic’s legal dispute is, however, not only against Apple but also against Google who has removed Epic from its Play […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
4. September 2020  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

Epic v Apple (1): introducing antitrust’s latest Big Tech battle royale
Epic, Fortnite, Apple, battle royale, competition law, antitrust, district court, monopolization, monopoly, essential facilities, refusal to supply, tying, abuse of dominance
Mid-August 2020, a series of events unfolded in a short period of time. They may prove a watershed moment for the role of antitrust in regulating digital markets. It started when gamers playing Fortnite on their iPhone were suddenly faced with a new choice screen when buying in-app currency: What changed is that Epic, the developer of Fortnite, introduced an […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
Nächste Seite »
Anja Naumann

Blog Editor

LL.M., PhD, currently legal trainee at the Higher Regional Court of Berlin.

>> Anja’s CoRe Blog posts >>

Daniel Mandrescu

Blog editor

Assistant Professor EU competition law, Europa Institute, Leiden University

>> Daniel’s CoRe blog posts >>

Friso Bostoen

Blog Editor

Assistant Professor of Competition Law and Digital Regulation, Tilburg University

Friso Bostoen is an assistant professor of competition law and digital regulation at Tilburg University. Previously, he was a Max Weber Fellow at the European University Institute. He holds degrees from KU Leuven (PhD, LLM) and Harvard University (LLM). Friso’s research focuses on antitrust enforcement in digital markets. His work has resulted in numerous international publications, presentations, and awards (including the AdC Competition Policy Award 2019 and the Concurrences PhD Award 2022). In addition, Friso edits the CoRe Blog and hosts the Monopoly Attack podcast.

>> Friso’s CoRe Blog posts >>

Nelly Stratieva

Head of Editorial Department and Data Protection Officer

Responsible for EStAL (European State Aid Law Quarterly), EPPPL (European Public Private Partnership Law Review) and CoRe (European Competition and Regulatory Law Review). Overseeing Lexxion Publisher’s privacy and data protection compliance.

Parsa Tonkaboni
Picture Rita Paukste
Rita Paukste

Former Blog Editor

Senior Associate, Motieka & Audzevicius PLP, Vilnius

>> Rita’s CoRe Blog posts >>

Case Digests ×

18. März 2024  |   von Daniel Mandrescu

The Apple App Store – A New Kind of Hallmark Case
competition law, abuse of dominance, apple app store, the digital markets act
After almost three years since the Commission sent Apple its statement of objections, which was significantly trimmed down, the Commission reached a finding of abuse for which it imposed a whopping fine of 1.8 billion euros. Alongside this case, Apple was also involved in an almost identical case running parallel in the Netherlands, with similar findings. Meanwhile, during these procedures, […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
16. November 2023  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

Rebutting the gatekeeper status – what does it take?
platforms, dma, gatekeepers, digital markets act, apple, google, microsoft, smasung
The deadline for appeals on the gatekeeper designation under the DMA is nearing its end.  Since the DMA imposes gatekeepers with demanding obligations, it is only natural that the potential subjects of this regulation will attempt to contest this status. What remains, however, to be clarified is what prospective gatekeepers can put forward as evidence to avoid being designated as […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
7. November 2023  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

The ACM vs. Apple AppStore – A Second Chance To Get It Right
app store, apple, abuse of dominance, platforms, ACM, art. 102 TFEU.
The Dutch case concerning the Apple App Store appears to make a (welcome) comeback. The case that started in 2019 came to a rather disappointing end in the summer of 2022 when the Dutch competition authority issued a public statement that gave the impression that it was satisfied with Apple’s adjustments to the App Store front in the Netherlands. This […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
8. März 2023  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

Requiem for an objection: the Commission drops half of its App Store case
Competition Blogs - zhiyue 7DOU5NlNIcE unsplash
On 28 February 2023, the European Commission (EC) sent Apple a new Statement of Objections (SO) ‘clarifying its concerns over App Store rules for music streaming providers’. Rather than a clarification, or an expansion of the previous SO, the new SO dropped one of the two objections—an unusual move, especially at this stage of the proceedings. When a startup shuts […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
1. April 2022  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

The French judgment on Google’s Play Store: a shift towards platform exploitation?
Competition Blogs - The French judgment on
On 28 March 2022, the Commercial Court of Paris fined Google €2 million for the imbalanced terms and conditions of its Play Store. While the fine is minimal, Google is also obliged to adapt those T&Cs, including the 30% fee—a much more far-reaching implication. Except for some news articles, the French judgment did not receive a lot of attention (which […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
18. Januar 2022  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

The Apple App Store case in the Netherlands – a potential game changer
Competition Blogs - State Aid Uncovered SM posts 35
Just before 2021 ended, Apple suffered a loss in the Netherlands where a national court in preliminary relief proceedings struck down its attempt to block the remedies imposed by the Dutch competition authority following a finding of abuse of dominance. As a result, as of last weekend, Apple is forced to accept third-party payment solutions implemented in (paid) dating apps […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
19. April 2021  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

The Commission’s Article 22 EUMR Guidance: catching killer acquisitions through the merger referral procedure?
Article 22, Merger Regulation, European Commission, Guidance, killer acquisitions, GAFAM
Over the past five years, the EU’s merger control regime has been hotly debated. The main concern driving the debate has been the intensive acquisition activity in the tech and pharmaceutical sectors. However, many of those acquisitions escape the jurisdictional thresholds of the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR) and therefore cannot be reviewed by the European Commission (EC). On 26 March […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
3. Dezember 2020  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

Why you (often) don’t need the essential facility doctrine in the digital economy? – Interpreting Lithuanian Railways and Slovak Telekom
Competition Blogs - problem 4612945 1280
The insights from Lithuanian Railways and Slovak Telekom may have serious implications for the application of the Oscar Bronner case law in the future. These insights may prove, however, to have the most value in the digital economy where it would appear that the essential facility doctrine might often not even be needed – not even in the case of […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
22. September 2020  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

Epic v Apple (2): market power and foreclosure in the app distribution market(s)
Epic, Fortnite, Apple, battle royale, competition law, antitrust, district court, monopolization, monopoly, essential facilities, refusal to supply, tying, abuse of dominance
Epic’s battle against Apple has been extensively covered in media in the past month. This attention is undoubtedly due to Epic’s explicit move against Apple’s terms and conditions as well as Apple’s fierce reaction to cut all ties with Epic. Epic’s legal dispute is, however, not only against Apple but also against Google who has removed Epic from its Play […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
4. September 2020  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

Epic v Apple (1): introducing antitrust’s latest Big Tech battle royale
Epic, Fortnite, Apple, battle royale, competition law, antitrust, district court, monopolization, monopoly, essential facilities, refusal to supply, tying, abuse of dominance
Mid-August 2020, a series of events unfolded in a short period of time. They may prove a watershed moment for the role of antitrust in regulating digital markets. It started when gamers playing Fortnite on their iPhone were suddenly faced with a new choice screen when buying in-app currency: What changed is that Epic, the developer of Fortnite, introduced an […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
Nächste Seite »

Case Digests ×

18. März 2024  |   von Daniel Mandrescu

The Apple App Store – A New Kind of Hallmark Case
competition law, abuse of dominance, apple app store, the digital markets act
After almost three years since the Commission sent Apple its statement of objections, which was significantly trimmed down, the Commission reached a finding of abuse for which it imposed a whopping fine of 1.8 billion euros. Alongside this case, Apple was also involved in an almost identical case running parallel in the Netherlands, with similar findings. Meanwhile, during these procedures, […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
16. November 2023  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

Rebutting the gatekeeper status – what does it take?
platforms, dma, gatekeepers, digital markets act, apple, google, microsoft, smasung
The deadline for appeals on the gatekeeper designation under the DMA is nearing its end.  Since the DMA imposes gatekeepers with demanding obligations, it is only natural that the potential subjects of this regulation will attempt to contest this status. What remains, however, to be clarified is what prospective gatekeepers can put forward as evidence to avoid being designated as […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
7. November 2023  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

The ACM vs. Apple AppStore – A Second Chance To Get It Right
app store, apple, abuse of dominance, platforms, ACM, art. 102 TFEU.
The Dutch case concerning the Apple App Store appears to make a (welcome) comeback. The case that started in 2019 came to a rather disappointing end in the summer of 2022 when the Dutch competition authority issued a public statement that gave the impression that it was satisfied with Apple’s adjustments to the App Store front in the Netherlands. This […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
8. März 2023  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

Requiem for an objection: the Commission drops half of its App Store case
Competition Blogs - zhiyue 7DOU5NlNIcE unsplash
On 28 February 2023, the European Commission (EC) sent Apple a new Statement of Objections (SO) ‘clarifying its concerns over App Store rules for music streaming providers’. Rather than a clarification, or an expansion of the previous SO, the new SO dropped one of the two objections—an unusual move, especially at this stage of the proceedings. When a startup shuts […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
1. April 2022  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

The French judgment on Google’s Play Store: a shift towards platform exploitation?
Competition Blogs - The French judgment on
On 28 March 2022, the Commercial Court of Paris fined Google €2 million for the imbalanced terms and conditions of its Play Store. While the fine is minimal, Google is also obliged to adapt those T&Cs, including the 30% fee—a much more far-reaching implication. Except for some news articles, the French judgment did not receive a lot of attention (which […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
18. Januar 2022  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

The Apple App Store case in the Netherlands – a potential game changer
Competition Blogs - State Aid Uncovered SM posts 35
Just before 2021 ended, Apple suffered a loss in the Netherlands where a national court in preliminary relief proceedings struck down its attempt to block the remedies imposed by the Dutch competition authority following a finding of abuse of dominance. As a result, as of last weekend, Apple is forced to accept third-party payment solutions implemented in (paid) dating apps […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
19. April 2021  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

The Commission’s Article 22 EUMR Guidance: catching killer acquisitions through the merger referral procedure?
Article 22, Merger Regulation, European Commission, Guidance, killer acquisitions, GAFAM
Over the past five years, the EU’s merger control regime has been hotly debated. The main concern driving the debate has been the intensive acquisition activity in the tech and pharmaceutical sectors. However, many of those acquisitions escape the jurisdictional thresholds of the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR) and therefore cannot be reviewed by the European Commission (EC). On 26 March […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
3. Dezember 2020  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

Why you (often) don’t need the essential facility doctrine in the digital economy? – Interpreting Lithuanian Railways and Slovak Telekom
Competition Blogs - problem 4612945 1280
The insights from Lithuanian Railways and Slovak Telekom may have serious implications for the application of the Oscar Bronner case law in the future. These insights may prove, however, to have the most value in the digital economy where it would appear that the essential facility doctrine might often not even be needed – not even in the case of […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
22. September 2020  |   Features von Daniel Mandrescu

Epic v Apple (2): market power and foreclosure in the app distribution market(s)
Epic, Fortnite, Apple, battle royale, competition law, antitrust, district court, monopolization, monopoly, essential facilities, refusal to supply, tying, abuse of dominance
Epic’s battle against Apple has been extensively covered in media in the past month. This attention is undoubtedly due to Epic’s explicit move against Apple’s terms and conditions as well as Apple’s fierce reaction to cut all ties with Epic. Epic’s legal dispute is, however, not only against Apple but also against Google who has removed Epic from its Play […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
4. September 2020  |   Features von Friso Bostoen

Epic v Apple (1): introducing antitrust’s latest Big Tech battle royale
Epic, Fortnite, Apple, battle royale, competition law, antitrust, district court, monopolization, monopoly, essential facilities, refusal to supply, tying, abuse of dominance
Mid-August 2020, a series of events unfolded in a short period of time. They may prove a watershed moment for the role of antitrust in regulating digital markets. It started when gamers playing Fortnite on their iPhone were suddenly faced with a new choice screen when buying in-app currency: What changed is that Epic, the developer of Fortnite, introduced an […]
Mehr lesen
Keine Kommentare
Nächste Seite »

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