Organisation: Illumina
AG Kokott: Abuse rules should only be used to probe deals in exceptional circumstances
Relying on abuse of dominance laws to review non-notifiable mergers after they close should “remain the absolute exception”, an advisor to the European Court of Justice has said.
18 April 2024
Vestager stands firm as EU report pushes for greater consolidation in telecoms markets
Margrethe Vestager today defended the importance and integrity of the EU’s merger control regime amid renewed calls for key markets to consolidate around European champions.
18 April 2024
To boldly go: The Briefing for 12 April 2024
Margrethe Vestager doesn’t expect to serve a third term as EU competition commissioner. Asked today what wisdom she would impart to future enforcers after 10 years at the European Commission, she said that, were she to do it again, she would have been bolder. Illegal business practices will become even more creative and keep developing – and if agencies don’t properly scrutinise problematic behaviour simply because it is novel, they will not be effective – even if it means risking a defeat in court, she said.
12 April 2024
French watchdog is contingency planning amid Article 22 uncertainty, Cœuré says
France’s Competition Authority will seek new deal review powers and use its abuse of dominance toolkit more aggressively to police problematic mergers should the European Court of Justice strike down the EU’s updated Article 22 policy, Benoît Cœuré has said.
11 April 2024
Guersent: EU will deploy Article 102 if ECJ thwarts Article 22 approach
The European Commission will use its abuse of dominance powers to tackle below-threshold mergers if the European Court of Justice voids the agency’s updated Article 22 policy, Olivier Guersent has signalled.
10 April 2024
Close to the chest: The Briefing for 25 March 2024
Lufthansa and ITA Airways may have received formal objections from the European Commission over their planned tie-up today, but that hasn’t stopped the carriers from remaining optimistic. Remedies are apparently at the ready to quieten concerns about reduced competition at Milan-Linate airport, though the airlines aren’t showing their hand just yet. Also in The Briefing, Qualcomm and Autotalks have abandoned their tie-up after drawing antitrust scrutiny in the EU, UK and US.
25 March 2024
AG opinion threatens EU’s Article 22 policy
The European Commission’s merger review powers are at risk of a fundamental shakeup after an advisor to the EU's top court criticised the agency's decision to review Illumina's acquisition of Grail.
21 March 2024
A Q&A with Étienne Chantrel
Étienne Chantrel stepped down as head of the mergers unit at France’s Competition Authority last Monday. He spoke to GCR about recent Article 22 referrals, political interference, policing minority shareholdings and the future use of the failing firm defence.
11 March 2024
French merger control chief set to launch new competition practice
The head of the French competition watchdog’s mergers unit has left the agency to spearhead a new antitrust practice at Eight Advisory in Paris.
07 March 2024
Under the hood: The Briefing for 22 February 2024
The European Commission has lifted the lid of the first 100 days of its Foreign Subsidies Regulation regime and the statistics paint an interesting picture. A total of 53 cases landed on the enforcer’s desk from 12 October to 20 January – more than half of which involved cross-border EU-non-EU deals. Of the 53 cases, one merger was abandoned in prenotification talks and only 14 were formally notified. The takeaway for notifying parties? Pay attention to the quality and completeness of filings to ensure a timely and smooth assessment. Also in The Briefing, Australia’s Prime Minister rules out a breakup of its supermarket duopoly.
22 February 2024