EU Competition Law, Data Protection and Online Platforms: Data as Essential Facility

EU Competition Law, Data Protection and Online Platforms: Data as Essential Facility PDF Author: Inge Graef
Publisher: Kluwer Law International B.V.
ISBN: 9041183256
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 342

Get Book Here

Book Description
All are agreed that the digital economy contributes to a dynamic evolution of markets and competition. Nonetheless, concerns are increasingly raised about the market dominance of a few key players. Because these companies hold the power to drive rivals out of business, regulators have begun to seek scope for competition enforcement in cases where companies claim that withholding data is needed to satisfy customers and cut costs. This book is the first focus on how competition law enforcement tools can be applied to refusals of dominant firms to give access data on online platforms such as search engines, social networks, and e-commerce platforms – commonly referred to as the ‘gatekeepers’ of the Internet. The question arises whether the denial of a dominant firm to grant competitors access to its data could constitute a ‘refusal to deal’ and lead to competition law liability under the so-called ‘essential facilities doctrine', according to which firms need access to shared knowledge in order to be able to compete. A possible duty to share data with rivals also brings to the forefront the interaction of competition law with data protection legislation considering that the required information may include personal data of individuals. Building on the refusal to deal concept, and using a multidisciplinary approach, the analysis covers such issues and topics as the following: – data portability; – interoperability; – data as a competitive advantage or entry barrier in digital markets; – market definition and dominance with respect to data; – disruptive versus sustaining innovation; – role of intellectual property regimes; – economic trade-off in essential facilities cases; – relationship of competition enforcement with data protection law and – data-related competition concerns in merger cases. The author draws on a wealth of relevant material, including EU and US decision-making practice, case law, and policy documents, as well as economic and empirical literature on the link between competition and innovation. The book concludes with a proposed framework for the application of the essential facilities doctrine to potential forms of abuse of dominance relating to data. In addition, it makes suggestions as to how data protection interests can be integrated into competition policy. An invaluable contribution to ongoing academic and policy discussions about how data-related competition concerns should be addressed under competition law, the analysis clearly demonstrates how existing competition tools for market definition and assessment of dominance can be applied to online platforms. It will be of immeasurable value to the many jurists, business persons, and academics concerned with this very timely subject.

EU Competition Law, Data Protection and Online Platforms: Data as Essential Facility

EU Competition Law, Data Protection and Online Platforms: Data as Essential Facility PDF Author: Inge Graef
Publisher: Kluwer Law International B.V.
ISBN: 9041183256
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 342

Get Book Here

Book Description
All are agreed that the digital economy contributes to a dynamic evolution of markets and competition. Nonetheless, concerns are increasingly raised about the market dominance of a few key players. Because these companies hold the power to drive rivals out of business, regulators have begun to seek scope for competition enforcement in cases where companies claim that withholding data is needed to satisfy customers and cut costs. This book is the first focus on how competition law enforcement tools can be applied to refusals of dominant firms to give access data on online platforms such as search engines, social networks, and e-commerce platforms – commonly referred to as the ‘gatekeepers’ of the Internet. The question arises whether the denial of a dominant firm to grant competitors access to its data could constitute a ‘refusal to deal’ and lead to competition law liability under the so-called ‘essential facilities doctrine', according to which firms need access to shared knowledge in order to be able to compete. A possible duty to share data with rivals also brings to the forefront the interaction of competition law with data protection legislation considering that the required information may include personal data of individuals. Building on the refusal to deal concept, and using a multidisciplinary approach, the analysis covers such issues and topics as the following: – data portability; – interoperability; – data as a competitive advantage or entry barrier in digital markets; – market definition and dominance with respect to data; – disruptive versus sustaining innovation; – role of intellectual property regimes; – economic trade-off in essential facilities cases; – relationship of competition enforcement with data protection law and – data-related competition concerns in merger cases. The author draws on a wealth of relevant material, including EU and US decision-making practice, case law, and policy documents, as well as economic and empirical literature on the link between competition and innovation. The book concludes with a proposed framework for the application of the essential facilities doctrine to potential forms of abuse of dominance relating to data. In addition, it makes suggestions as to how data protection interests can be integrated into competition policy. An invaluable contribution to ongoing academic and policy discussions about how data-related competition concerns should be addressed under competition law, the analysis clearly demonstrates how existing competition tools for market definition and assessment of dominance can be applied to online platforms. It will be of immeasurable value to the many jurists, business persons, and academics concerned with this very timely subject.

Market Definition in EU Competition Law

Market Definition in EU Competition Law PDF Author: Miguel Sousa Ferro
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN: 1788118391
Category : Antitrust law
Languages : en
Pages : 522

Get Book Here

Book Description
The maintenance of a fair, competitive market among member states is critical to the functioning of the EU economy. In this book, the first comprehensive, unifying view of market definition, Miguel Ferro adeptly explores the different economic-legal issues that arise in EU competition law.

The Economic Assessment of Mergers Under European Competition Law

The Economic Assessment of Mergers Under European Competition Law PDF Author: Daniel Gore
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107007720
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 559

Get Book Here

Book Description
Provides a clear, concise and practical overview of the key economic techniques and evidence employed in European merger control.

Competition Law’s Innovation Factor

Competition Law’s Innovation Factor PDF Author: Viktoria H S E Robertson
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1509931902
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 424

Get Book Here

Book Description
In recent years, market definition has come under attack as an analytical tool of competition law. Scholars have increasingly questioned its usefulness and feasibility. That criticism comes into sharper relief in dynamic, innovation-driven markets, which do not correspond to the static markets on which the concept of the relevant market was modelled. This book explores that controversy from a comparative legal perspective, taking into account both EU competition and US antitrust law. It examines the manifold ways in which courts and competition authorities in the EU and US have factored innovation-related considerations into market delineation, covering: innovative product markets, product differentiation, future markets, issues going beyond market definition proper – such as innovation competition, innovation markets and potential competition –, intellectual property rights, innovative aftermarkets and multi-sided platforms. This book finds that going forward, the role of market definition in dynamic contexts needs to focus on its function of market characterisation rather than on the assessment of market power.

Market definition and market power in the platform economy

Market definition and market power in the platform economy PDF Author: Jens-Uwe Franck
Publisher: Centre on Regulation in Europe asbl (CERRE)
ISBN:
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 96

Get Book Here

Book Description
With the rise of digital platforms and the natural tendency of markets involving platforms to become concentrated, competition authorities and courts are more frequently in a position to investigate and decide merger and abuse cases that involve platforms. This report provides guidance on how to define markets and on how to assess market power when dealing with two-sided platforms. DEFINITION Competition authorities and courts are well advised to uniformly use a multi-markets approach when defining markets in the context of two-sided platforms. The multi-markets approach is the more flexible instrument compared to the competing single-market approach that defines a single market for both sides of a platform, as the former naturally accounts for different substitution possibilities by the user groups on the two sides of the platform. While one might think of conditions under which a single-market approach could be feasible, the necessary conditions are so severe that it would only be applicable under rare circumstances. To fully appreciate business activities in platform markets from a competition law point of view, and to do justice to competition law’s purpose, which is to protect consumer welfare, the legal concept of a “market” should not be interpreted as requiring a price to be paid by one party to the other. It is not sufficient to consider the activities on the “unpaid side” of the platform only indirectly by way of including them in the competition law analysis of the “paid side” of the platform. Such an approach would exclude certain activities and ensuing positive or negative effects on consumer welfare altogether from the radar of competition law. Instead, competition practice should recognize straightforwardly that there can be “markets” for products offered free of charge, i.e. without monetary consideration by those who receive the product. ASSESSMENT The application of competition law often requires an assessment of market power. Using market shares as indicators of market power, in addition to all the difficulties in standard markets, raises further issues for two-sided platforms. When calculating revenue shares, the only reasonable option is to use the sum of revenues on all sides of the platform. Then, such shares should not be interpreted as market shares as they are aggregated over two interdependent markets. Large revenue shares appear to be a meaningful indicator of market power if all undertakings under consideration serve the same sides. However, they are often not meaningful if undertakings active in the relevant markets follow different business models. Given potentially strong cross-group external effects, market shares are less apt in the context of two-sided platforms to indicate market power (or the lack of it). Barriers to entry are at the core of persistent market power and, thus, the entrenchment of incumbent platforms. They deserve careful examination by competition authorities. Barriers to entry may arise due to users’ coordination failure in the presence of network effect. On two-sided platforms, users on both sides of the market have to coordinate their expectations. Barriers to entry are more likely to be present if an industry does not attract new users and if it does not undergo major technological change. Switching costs and network effects may go hand in hand: consumer switching costs sometimes depend on the number of platform users and, in this case, barriers to entry from consumer switching costs increase with platform size. Since market power is related to barriers to entry, the absence of entry attempts may be seen as an indication of market power. However, entry threats may arise from firms offering quite different services, as long as they provide a new home for users’ attention and needs.

Competition in Energy Markets

Competition in Energy Markets PDF Author: Peter D. Cameron
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 9780198257707
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 544

Get Book Here

Book Description
Recent years have seen a major growth in the European law concerning the operation of the energy industry, especially with respect to electricity and gas. Several directives have been adopted that are aimed at the promotion of competition in this key sector of the European economy. At thesame time, the jurisprudence of the European Court had developed further on matters such as access to networks, import and export monopolies and security of supply.In this book the authors examine the principal legislation, Treaty provisions and decisions of the Court of Justice and Court of First Instance of the EU as they related to the promotion of competition in European energy markets. In particular, two chapters are devoted to a detailed analysis of theprovisions of the two directives that set out common rules for the creation of an internal market in the electricity and gas sectors. In each case, the analysis is set in the context of the various programmes of energy market liberalization and privatization in the Member States, which aresummarized in this book. However, the authors also take the wider pan-European context into account, explaining the requirements and the implications of the European Economic Area Agreement, the Energy Charter Treaty and the Europe Agreements with countries of Central and Eastern Europe.The approach adopted by the authors is both analytical and historical. They locate the legislation in the context of the EU Internal Market programme that began in the late 1980s and explain the roles played by the various parties (energy industries, consumers and EU institutions) in shaping thefinal legislation. Importantly, they explain how the framework character of the energy directives has led to further important rule-making in the implementation of the directives across the EU. They conclude that a co-ordinated response between the European Commission and the national regulatorswill be essential to resolve problems arising in the transition to a competitive energy market in the EU.

Licensing Agreements

Licensing Agreements PDF Author: Kojo Yelpaala
Publisher: Springer
ISBN:
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 452

Get Book Here

Book Description


Economic Analysis in EU Competition Policy

Economic Analysis in EU Competition Policy PDF Author: Parcu, Pier L.
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN: 1800370199
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 320

Get Book Here

Book Description
This insightful book assesses emerging trends in the role of economic analysis in EU competition policy, exploring how it has substantially increased in terms of both theories and methods.

Unfair Competition Law

Unfair Competition Law PDF Author: Frauke Henning-Bodewig
Publisher: Kluwer Law International B.V.
ISBN: 9041123296
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 274

Get Book Here

Book Description
The book delineates, with extraordinary clarity and precision, the working of unfair competition law throughout the European Union. Its four comprehensive chapters encompass: basic considerations of definition, subject matter, enforcement, and applicable law: international provisions under the Paris convention, TRIPS, and WIPO model law; analysis of relevant EC directives and regulations and ECJ jurisprudence; and extensive discussions of the national unfair competition laws of all 25 Member States. For each Member State, specific topics covered include such considerations as the following: sources of law; competition law in a nutshell; regulation of advertising; direct marketing; sales promotion; risk of confusion; disparagement, defamation; misappropriation, imitation; impediment of competitors; and breach of the law. The author also provides a selected bibliography of sources for each country. It would be difficult to find a more useful analysis of European Unfair Competition Law than this systematic study. It is practical, thorough, clarifying, and readable, all at the same time. The author untangles the most complex of apparent contradictions with impressive skill. Copies of this book will quickly take their places on the working shelves of interested practitioners, academics, and officials throughout Europe.

The Role of Economic Analysis in EU Competition Law: the European School, Fourth Edition

The Role of Economic Analysis in EU Competition Law: the European School, Fourth Edition PDF Author: Doris Hildebrand
Publisher: International Competition Law
ISBN: 9789041162458
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 554

Get Book Here

Book Description
International Competition Law Series Volume 66 The Role of Economic Analysis in EU Competition Law, Fourth Edtionand in its revised and updated fourth edition, explores the full spectrum of the development of European economic approach in competition law. Almost two decades after the arrival of the and‘more economics based approachand’ to EU competition law, this economic school of thought, the European School, has been properly defined and is now in general used among competition law practitioners and their government counterparts. This approach, studied by Doris Hildebrand since the first edition of this now-classic work, implements the European cornerstones of the social market economy concept such as freedom of contract, social fairness, and the equality principle. In this edition, the author uncovers its multiple rationales as it has gradually formulated the legal principles of and‘competition economicsand’ that have come to underlie all matters related to Article 101 (1), Article 101 (3), Article 102, the Merger Regulation, and the State Aid provisions. As in previous editions, the bookand’s interdisciplinary approach integrates law and economics in such a way that economics in competition proceedings becomes easier to understand for lawyers not trained in economic theory or economic school of thoughts. It offers an in-depth description of and‘European Schooland’ theories and applications, particularly with respect to vertical and horizontal agreements. In addition, the book provides solid guidance on the definition of the relevant antitrust markets, with a detailed description of the hypothetical monopolist test. Whatand’s in this book: Among the fundamental elements discussed are the following: application of economics in the competition test as developed by the EU Courts; concrete economic analysis companies need to perform in order to qualify for an exemption; test procedures to assess whether a certain behaviour constitutes an abuse under Article 82; various methodologies to define markets; contrasting the European and Chicago schools; practical implementation of the EU social market economy objective in EU competition law; workable competition vs. effective competition; changes in the enforcement system; use of evidence in market definition practice; State Aid provisions; and empirical techniques used to evaluate a merger. All significant cases contributory to the development of European competition economics are discussed and analysed in detail. and‘The Frameand’, the first chapter that has been included in this edition, clearly demonstrates all the ways in which EU competition policy represents an essential foundation of the EU. Moreover and‘The Frameand’ elaborates that the social market economy objective as defined in the Lisbon Treaty is, from the economic perspective, the appropriate benchmark in any EU competition law assessment. This benchmark requires a holistic approach by taking into account and‘utilitiesand’ of EU citizens instead of focusing on price elements only. How will this help you: This new updated and revised edition has been greatly anticipated and will be widely welcomed. The book helps to develop expertise in applying the and‘more economics based approachand’ by citing the relevant case law. Competition lawyers, corporate in-house counsel, competition authorities, and courts will appreciate the bookand’s clear, understandable discussion of the relevant European competition theory, authoritative guidance on the application of economic analysis, and practical insight in dealing with these subjects in real-world cases. and