The Situation: The European Commission ("EC") has released its first guidance on assessing market distortions under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation ("FSR")....more
The UK Competition and Markets Authority ("CMA") has successfully appealed a decision of the UK Competition Appeals Tribunal (the "Tribunal") rejecting its application for a warrant to search domestic premises—paving the way...more
The European Commission ("Commission") adopted an Industrial Carbon Management Communication ("Communication") on 6 February 2024, outlining the Commission's ambitions for a strategy to boost the deployment of technologies in...more
Antitrust enforcement in labor markets continues to escalate worldwide. Jones Day partners Kevin Hart and Philipp Werner talk about the continuing crackdown on anticompetitive labor practices in the U.S. and across the EU,...more
In Short -
The Situation: On July 10, 2023, the European Commission ("EC") adopted the Implementing Regulation ("IR") and the corresponding notification forms (Form FS-CO and Form FS-PP), which specify the information and...more
In Short -
The Situation: On 27 March 2023, the European Commission ("Commission") published a Communication amending its 2008 Guidance on enforcement priorities concerning exclusionary abuses ("amended 2008 Guidance...more
The foreign subsidies regulation ("FSR") requires prenotification of certain large M&A transactions and public bids involving companies that receive subsidies from governments outside the European Union ("EU")....more
The European Parliament ("EP") and Council formally adopted the Digital Markets Act ("DMA") in July 2022, imposing new behavioral obligations on large digital platforms qualifying as "gatekeepers." The final agreement...more
In March 2022, the European Commission published "REPowerEU," a blueprint of its planned changes to the regulation of European Union energy markets in direct response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. At...more
Overview of the FSR -
The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union ("TFEU") prohibits any form of public financial support selectively granted to businesses that distorts competition, absent an exception. The EU's...more
7/13/2022
/ Competition ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Foreign Subsidies ,
Public Procurement Policies ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
The European Competition Network ("ECN") issued a policy statement indicating that member agencies will not intervene in legitimate, cooperative efforts to address disruptions caused by the conflict in Ukraine and related...more
Background -
The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union ("TFEU") prohibits Member States from selectively granting public financial support to businesses that distorts competition and affects trade among Member...more
EU rules prohibit "State aid," unless the Commission authorizes the aid as compatible with the EU Treaties. State aid is a Member State funding measure imputable to the State and financed through State resources that benefits...more
2/14/2022
/ Climate Action Plan ,
Corporate Financing ,
Corporate Governance ,
Environmental Justice ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Green Deal ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Nuclear Power ,
Pollution Control ,
State Aid
The Background: In 2019, the European Commission and the European Council jointly approved a regulation that will require new safety measures in motor vehicles starting July 2022, including the installation of so-called...more
7/2/2021
/ Automation Systems ,
Automotive Industry ,
Black Box ,
Car Accident ,
Data Collection ,
EU ,
Motor Vehicles ,
New Regulations ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Safety Standards
The Development: The Bundestag, the German legislature, amended Germany's antitrust laws to include special competition rules for digital platform "companies with overwhelming importance for competition across multiple...more
Fortnite game maker Epic Games brings dispute with Apple to Australia, alleging "misuse of market power."
Epic Games, developer of the popular game Fortnite, filed proceedings in the Federal Court of Australia alleging...more
The Situation: An investigation launched in 2016 by the German competition authority was meant to determine if Facebook was abusing its market position with its imposition of "misleading" data protection policies.
The...more
3/6/2019
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Competition Authorities ,
Data Collection ,
Data Protection ,
Facebook ,
Federal Cartel Office (the FCO) ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Germany ,
Instagram ,
Monopolization ,
Prior Express Consent ,
WhatsApp ,
Without Consent
The Background: The automotive industry has achieved a number of technological advances aimed at developing connected cars, automated vehicles, and ultimately autonomous driving. These innovations are expected to pose a...more
9/7/2018
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Automotive Industry ,
Competition ,
Competition Authorities ,
Connected Cars ,
Cybersecurity ,
Driverless Cars ,
EU ,
FRAND ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Monopolization ,
Popular
The Background: The automotive industry has achieved a number of technological advances aimed at developing connected cars, automated vehicles, and ultimately autonomous driving. These innovations are expected to pose a...more
8/31/2018
/ Automotive Industry ,
Connected Cars ,
Driverless Cars ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
FRAND ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Internet of Things ,
IP License ,
Patents ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Safety Standards ,
Telecommunications
The Situation: The liability regimes for product liability related to driverless cars in various European countries remain far from harmonized, and lawmakers trail behind the faster moving reality.
The Plan: The European...more
The Ruling: On December 6, 2017, the Court of Justice of the European Union ("CJEU") issued its long-awaited judgment in the Coty case, which clarifies the extent to which an online platform ban within a selective...more
The Background: The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation into a specific provision of the UK-controlled foreign company rules.
The Issue: The Commission will investigate whether the UK's so-called Group...more
12/13/2017
/ Anti Tax Avoidance Directive (ATAD) ,
BEPS ,
Controlled Foreign Corporations ,
Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Foreign Subsidiaries ,
International Tax Issues ,
Multinationals ,
Parent Corporation ,
State Aid ,
UK
The Ruling: The European Court of Justice recently provided widely anticipated guidance on the concept of excessive pricing, clarifying the use of key legal criteria in identifying an excessive pricing abuse under Article 102...more
10/27/2017
/ Competition Authorities ,
Copyright ,
Corporate Counsel ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Excessive Pricing ,
Latvia ,
Member State ,
New Guidance ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The Ruling: A recent European General Court decision provided valuable guidance on applying abuse of dominance rules (Article 102 TFEU) in the context of software products and provided some welcome clarifications regarding...more
The German Federal Cartel Office ("FCO") provided guidance on several hot antitrust topics in July 2017. While the guidance is contained in the FCO's report on its sector inquiry into the cement and ready-mix concrete...more