Competition law Blog

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

The CoRe Blog is the interactive online platform for up-to-date analysis of EU competition law developments. It’s the blog companion of the quarterly double-blind peer-reviewed European Competition and Regulatory Law Review (CoRe). The CoRe Blog fills in the gaps that a quarterly can’t address: immediate updates and analysis of breaking news in EU competition.

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15. March 2020  |   Features by Caranina Colpaert

Corona and EU economic law: Free movement of goods
Corona and Antitrust Law
By Wouter Devroe & Nina Colpaert COVID-19 is not only stress-testing our competition laws but also the free movement provisions in the TFEU. Can individual Member States, without consulting other Member States or the European Commission, simply ban the export of medicines or face masks? Can they order shops to close? Can they impose maximum prices for protective medical equipment? […]
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5. March 2020  |   Features by Tommi Lahtinen

Reverse payment settlements in the European Union after the Generics (UK) judgment – perplexing legal uncertainty
Competition Blogs - close up 1853400 1920 825x400 1
On January 30th, the Court of Justice (“the Court”) released its judgment in the Generics (UK) case. In a preliminary ruling procedure, the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal asked the Court to provide guidance on how to interpret Article 101 TFEU with regard to patent settlements between pharmaceutical companies. The judgment has considerable legal significance as it represents the very first […]
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4. February 2020  |   Features by Liesbet Van Acker

The Intermarché-Coca Cola dispute: Who’s the bad guy? An analysis of the retail distributor-supplier relationship
Competition Blogs - beverages 3105631 1920 1 825x400 1
If you want to buy Coca Cola products in the supermarket Intermarché in France, you will arrive home empty-handed. Since the end of December, Coca Cola has refused to refill Intermarché’s stock, following a conflict about Intermarché’s unwillingness to sell the whole assortment of Coca Cola’s products. In the summer, Intermarché communicated to Coca Cola that it would like to […]
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23. January 2020  |   Features by Friso Bostoen

The antitrust books you should’ve read in 2019 [part 2]
Competition Blogs - stanislav kondratiev 6pO3QFkk7hQ unsplash
In a CoRe Blog post earlier this month, I introduced the first three ‘antitrust books you should’ve read in 2019’. In this post, I take a look at the next and final three books. Completing the list involved a tiny bit of cheating (including a book that was published in 2018 and another one that doesn’t strictly concern antitrust), but I guarantee that none […]
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10. January 2020  |   Features by Friso Bostoen

The antitrust books you should’ve read in 2019 [part 1]
Competition Blogs - stanislav kondratiev 6pO3QFkk7hQ unsplash
While the past year may not have been spectacular on all fronts, it was a very good one when it came to the publication of antitrust books. New editions of authoritative textbooks were published, including the 7th edition of Jones & Sufrin (the 9th edition of Whish & Bailey was released in 2018). New entrants also dared challenge the incumbents: Lianos, Korah & Siciliani released their own competition […]
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27. November 2019  |   Features by Daniel Mandrescu

Lessons and questions from Google Android- Part 2 – Tying in two-sided markets, anti-competitive effects and extra-territorial remedies
Android with cookies
The very lengthy and complex Google Android decision provides us with lots of material for discussion. In the first part of this discussion the matter of the definition of the relevant market was addressed. Although it may appear that this is the only key issue in the case, the decision covers several other issues, which deserve equal (if not more) attention. […]
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19. December 2019  |   Case Digests by Kiran Desai

2019:23 Eco-Bat Technologies Ltd and Others v European Commission
Competition Blogs - brett jordan NIDPm ltVbA unsplash
Court Court of Justice Date of ruling 16 January 2019 Case name (short version) Eco-Bat Technologies Ltd and Others v European Commission Case Citation C-312/18 P ECLI:EU:C:2019:23 Key words Appeal — Agreements, decisions and concerted practices — Market for car battery recycling — Decision finding an infringement of Article 101 TFEU and imposing fines — Correcting decision adding the value […]
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12. November 2019  |   Features by Friso Bostoen

Amazon cases on the move: Bundeskartellamt closes proceedings while European Commission opens formal investigation
online shopping cartoon
The 17th of July has been quite the day for Amazon, at least when it comes to antitrust. Firstly, the German Competition Authority (Bundeskartellamt) has closed its abuse of dominance proceedings against Amazon in return for concessions from the online marketplace. Secondly, the European Commission announced that it was opening a formal investigation into possible anti-competitive conduct by Amazon. This blog post takes a closer […]
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12. November 2019  |   Features by Friso Bostoen

Abuse of relative dominance in the platform economy: a French court finds Amazon’s contracts with third-party sellers significantly imbalanced
Competition Blogs - p
Two years ago (before Amazon became entangled in a patchwork of investigations by competition authorities), Reuters reported: ‘France files complaint against Amazon for abuse of dominant position’. The news report did not garner a lot of attention. More surprisingly, neither did the recent judgment of the Paris Commercial Court on the complaint. As the judgment offers insight into several pressing questions presented by platform competition […]
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6. November 2019  |   Case Digests by Kiran Desai

2018:904 Groupe Canal + v European Commission
Competition Blogs - kelly sikkema MsddXGPfQlA unsplash
Court General Court Date of ruling 12 December 2018 Case name (short version) Groupe Canal + v European Commission Case Citation T-873/16 ECIL:EU:T:2018:904 Key words Competition — Agreements, decisions and concerted practices — Television distribution — Decision making commitments binding — Territorial exclusivity — Preliminary evaluation — Effect on the contractual rights of third parties — Proportionality Basic context Application […]
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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 >>

5. March 2019  |   Features by Simen Klevstrand

Minority acquisition headed for first prohibition in Norway
Competition Blogs - bernard hermant zqx58cvjR5A unsplash
By Marianne Henne Møller and Simen Klevstrand, Haavind (Norway) The Norwegian Competition Authority (the “NCA”) has warned Sector Alarm Group AS that its acquisition of a non-controlling stake in a competitor may be blocked. Unless the parties are able to resolve the NCA’s concerns by 29 March, they face the first prohibition of a minority acquisition under Norway’s 2004 Competition […]
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18. February 2019  |   Features by Friso Bostoen

When competition law met data protection: the Bundeskartellamt’s Facebook decision
Competition Blogs - kon karampelas HUBofEFQ6CA unsplash
On February 6th, the German Competition Authority (Bundeskartellamt or BKA) adopted its long-awaited Facebook decision, imposing far-reaching restrictions on how the social network can collect and process user data. This decision follows a preliminary assessment that the BKA published in December 2017, which this blog discussed at length. The BKA’s decision—as set out in a case summary and background paper—sticks closely to its preliminary assessment. In this blog post, […]
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29. January 2019  |   Features by Anja Naumann

The Siemens-Alstom merger-thriller – indicator of a new era for European champions?
Competition Blogs - alcom
The proposed Siemens-Alstom merger (Case M.8677) has kept many parties on their toes since it was notified in June 2018, from the parties themselves to the EU Commission and even to national governments. With the recent remedies offered by the parties to secure clearance of the merger allegedly unofficially rejected today, there is little hope left the merger will go through now. […]
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18. January 2019  |   Features by Daniel Mandrescu

Abuse of dominance through data overcharges and EU competition law enforcement
Competition Blogs - markus spiske iar afB0QQw unsplash
The past year the EU commission and numerous competition authorities have addressed the matter of applying competition law to online platforms. The discussions concerning Facebook and Amazon have even touched upon the difficult relation between data and competition law. Despite the many debates concerning the application of competition law in digital markets, little attestation was given to the calculation of fines and damages […]
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9. January 2019  |   Features by Friso Bostoen

It’s raining Amazon probes: the Bundeskartellamt joins the Commission in investigating the tech giant’s marketplace practices
Competition Blogs - amazon 3
The investigation On 29 November 2018, the German competition authority (Bundeskartellamt) announced an investigation into Amazon’s business terms and practices on its German marketplace. The Bundeskartellamt’s president commented: Amazon is the largest online retailer and operates by far the largest online marketplace in Germany. Many retailers and manufacturers depend on the reach of Amazon’s marketplace for their online sales. Amazon functions as […]
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11. December 2018  |   Features by Rita Paukste

Claims for compensation for damages caused by anticompetitive conduct: jurisdiction questions
Competition Blogs - plane
Recently the Court of Justice of the European Union (the CJEU or the Court) issued the preliminary ruling on application of Brussels I Regulation in competition damages actions. The ruling provides guidance on the application and interpretation of special jurisdiction clauses, with a focus on Art 5(3) of the Brussels I Regulation. One of the main aspects of the ruling is the […]
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29. November 2018  |   Features by Daniel Mandrescu

Apple’s App Store commission fee and (anti-competitive) governance: when a platform’s zero-pricing strategy becomes expensive
Competition Blogs - app store
These days Apple is at the Supreme Court trying to defend its pricing scheme for the App Store, which is currently under fire for being potentially abusive with respect consumers that end up paying perhaps quite a bit more for their apps than they should. Although it is uncertain whether the claimants will be allowed to proceed with the claim, […]
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20. November 2018  |   Features by Anja Naumann

The Karstadt – Kaufhof merger decided
Competition Blogs - freestocks org 3Q3tsJ01nc unsplash
The Bundeskartellamt started investigations into the merger between big retail store chains Karstadt and Kaufhof just in October and announced the investigations were expected to be complicated and long. Given the parties’ arguments in favour of the merger as counter-measure to pressures from online retail, we suspected here that this merger might turn out the perfect opportunity for the authority to position […]
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13. November 2018  |   Features by Friso Bostoen

Challenges to Antitrust in a Changing Economy [conference report]
Competition Blogs - Challenges to Antitrust in a Changing Economy 768x384 1
On November 9th, CPI and CCIA organized a conference on the topic of ‘Challenges to Antitrust in a Changing Economy’ at Harvard Law School. In the style of our previous conference recap on this blog, this post covers some of the salient issues discussed during the conference for those who could not make it (or want to relive it). Panel 1: Measuring Concentration Bruce […]
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18. October 2018  |   Features by Michiel Verhulst

The BritNed v ABB Case: private enforcement pur sang
Competition Blogs - jonny caspari d2HWQg82RUo unsplash
Private enforcement of competition law, particularly with regard to cartel damages claims, has been a highly debated topic since the seminal ECJ decision Courage v Crehan in 2001 (e.g. here and here). Together with the Netherlands and Germany, the UK is traditionally put forward as one of the main fora to introduce a damages action based on a competition law infringement. However, it was only […]
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