Category: AAT

AAT launches multi-part “@innovation & #antitrust” series

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Philips changed its company slogan from “We make things better” to “We create better ideas”

new multi-part series

Philips is but one of the companies – albeit a pioneer – that recognizes the crucial forward-looking importance of innovation.  Its CEO, Frans van Houten, has been quoted as saying: “Innovation is our lifeblood and will be the main driver of profitable growth going forward. … I intend to drive innovation with more intensity to help us win new customers.”

The U.S. Department of Commerce published a 2010 report claiming that 75% of U.S. economic growth since the end of World War II is attributable to innovation in technology.

Antitrust law is likewise cognizant of the uniqueness of ideas — the result of innovation — rather than old-fashioned brick-and-mortar “products & services”.  For instance, how do you define the relevant market for a merger of ideas-based companies?  The agencies have come to accept the existence of innovation markets almost two decades ago, in the mid-1990s (based on the original “R&D markets” concept of the 1980s, and driven in no insignificant part by the advent and meteoric rise of biotechnology patents).  The 2010 U.S. Horizontal Merger Guidelines now expressly incorporate the concept of innovating as a relevant metric of competitiveness into their language, notably at section 1 of the HMG: A transaction may have anti-competitive effects if it strengthens a firm’s market power by encouraging market participant(s) “to raise price, reduce output, diminish innovation, or otherwise harm customers as a result of diminished competitive constraints or incentives.”

We at AAT are now previewing a series of posts on innovation & antitrust to be published during the spring and summer of 2014. They will be hash-tagged #AntitrustInnovation on Twitter.

You can read our first installment of the thematic collection here (last post on innovation, competition and IP in developing countries), written by contributing author and Tilburg University scholar Sofia Ranchordás.

We expect the series to engender active discussions with, and within, our readership, either via comments on this site or on Twitter.

Cartel regulation in S.A. – 2014 Oxenham

Posted on by andreasstargard

south_africa

In addition to his highlights of the latest developments in the ZA cartel sphere, AfricanAntitrust.com editor John Oxenham recently published an excellent overview of Cartel Regulation in South Africa.

A must-read.

We are making the full PDF available to our blog readers.  The piece was originally published by Global Competition Review.

John Oxenham, editor
John Oxenham, AAT editor

 

Cartels: Developments in South Africa

Posted on by andreasstargard

south_africa

AfricanAntitrust.com editor John Oxenham recently published a terrific summary of the latest developments in the ZA cartel sphere.

A teaser introduction is below.  His detailed article can be found here (PDF).
John Oxenham, editor
John Oxenham, AAT editor

The past 18 months have witnessed significant developments in the investigation and prosecution of cartel conduct in South African competition law.  In summary, these developments are the following:

• The Supreme Court of Appeal recognised the availability of ‘opt
out’ class actions for private damages and set out a procedure
through which plaintiffs can seek certification of a class.
• The Constitutional Court extended the availability of class actions
for private damages by recognising ‘opt-in’ class actions
where the interests of justice permit such a procedure.
• The Competition Commission (the Commission) for the first
time utilised a fast-track settlement process in relation to the
prosecution of a widespread cartel in the construction industry.
• An amendment to the Competition Act, 89 of 1998 (the Act)
was promulgated giving the Commission the power to institute
market enquiries. The Commission has indicated that it wishes
to conduct a market inquiry into the private health-care sector.
• The Supreme Court of Appeal broadened the scope for the
Competition Tribunal (the Tribunal) to adjudicate complaints
prosecuted by the Commission.
• The Supreme Court of Appeal confirmed that leniency applications
submitted to the Commission by a leniency applicant are
subject to legal privilege unless the Commission makes reference
to the application in a complaint referral to the Tribunal
– in which case it will be taken to have waived privilege.
• The North Gauteng High Court found that a leniency applicant
is not protected from private damages claims – even where it
is not cited by the Commission as a respondent in complaint
proceedings brought before the Tribunal.

The article originally appeared in The African and Middle Eastern Antitrust Review 2014, which is published by Global Competition Review and is available online at: http://globalcompetitionreview.com/reviews/59/the-african-middle-eastern-antitrust-review-2014

NB: AfricanAntitrust.com author and economist Patrick Smith recently also published an article in the same edition of the Review, see: Public Interest Factors in African Competition Policy.

Public Interest Factors in African Competition Policy

Posted on by andreasstargard

Author and economist Patrick Smith recently published “Public Interest Factors in African Competition Policy“ in The African and Middle Eastern Antitrust Review 2014.  The consideration of public interest factors in competition law inquiries has generated much debate over the past few years. Several high profile cases have illustrated the potential for competition decisions,
and in particular merger inquiries, to be significantly affected by non-competition public interest issues.

Our readers have free access to the full PDF.

The Review is published by Global Competition Review and is available online at: http://globalcompetitionreview.com/reviews/59/the-african-middle-eastern-antitrust-review-2014

This year’s issue of the Review also features two other AfricanAntitrust.com writers: contributing author, Chabo Peo, whose piece on competition law in Botswana is available at the GCR web site, as well as editor John Oxenham‘s piece on cartels in South Africa, available here.

A full list of contributors to our site can be found at: https://africanantitrust.com/about/

In-house competition counsel joins leading African antitrust blog

Posted on by andreasstargard
We are pleased to present the latest addition to the ranks of AAT authorship: Mark Griffiths.

Mark Griffiths is Competition Counsel for Barclays Africa Group and is accountable for competition risk management across the African continent for Barclays.  Mark is heavily involved in antitrust and merger matters across twelve African jurisdictions with active competition authorities.  He has been involved in a number of pivotal developments across the region.

Prior to his appointment with the Barclays Group in 2007, he was a senior associate (admitted as a solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales) in the EU and Competition practice of Clifford Chance (London).  He also previously worked for DG Competition at the European Commission as well as being specialist legal advisor to the House of Lords EU Select Committee on the EU Financial Services Action Plan.

Mark is a regular contributor to a range of legal journals as well as a regular speaker on African competition law at local and international conferences. Mark has attended meetings of the International Competition Network as a NGA. He has an LLB (University of Southampton, UK) and an LLM in European Law (College of Europe, Bruges, Belgium).

A full list of contributors to our site is available here: https://africanantitrust.com/about/

Competition economist joins panel of AfricanAntitrust.com blog authors

Posted on by andreasstargard

Patrick Smith is a partner at RBB Economics.  Previously a chemical engineer, Patrick applies economics, econometrics and industrial expertise to competition policy, litigation and arbitration.

He has testified and consulted to parties, agencies and interveners in high-profile, complex and multi-jurisdictional proceedings over the past decade.  These include leading roles in cases such as:

Syniverse/MACH, Bread, Universal/EMI, Gold Circle/Kenilworth Racing, Thaba Chueu/SamQuarz, First Quantum v DRC, Pioneer/Pannar, Sun Capital/DSP, Dow/Rohm & Haas, InBev/Anheuser Busch, ABF/GBI, Polymers and Inco/Falconbridge.

Patrick is a regular speaker on antitrust economics at conferences and seminars around the world.

We look forward — as do you, we expect — to reading Patrick’s insightful takes on competition law & economics!

Patrick Smith, RBB, author
Patrick Smith, RBB, author (South Africa)

A full list of contributors to our site is available here: https://africanantitrust.com/about/

New author joins leading African competition blog

Posted on by andreasstargard
We are pleased to report that Luke Kelly has joined AfricanAntitrust.

Our newest contributing author, Luke Kelly, is an advocate of the High Court of South Africa and member of the Cape Bar.  He holds a masters degree in competition law from King’s College London and currently teaches competition law on a part-time basis at the University of Cape Town.

We look forward — as do you, we expect — to reading Luke’s insightful takes on competition law in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent.

Luke Kelly, Advocate of the High Court of South Africa and member of the Cape Bar, author
Luke Kelly, author

A full list of contributors to our site is available here: https://africanantitrust.com/about/