Tag: Article 102 TFEU

Amazon settles EU allegations regarding third-party sellers on Amazon Marketplace: some progress made but much remains to be done

The European Commission has accepted a set of legally-binding commitments offered by Amazon to settle two long-running antitrust investigations into whether Amazon has abused its dominant position in e-commerce.  In doing so, the Commission will not issue a formal infringement decision and will not impose a fine.   This is a significant outcome for these … Continue reading Amazon settles EU allegations regarding third-party sellers on Amazon Marketplace: some progress made but much remains to be done →

Some additional thoughts on the General Court’s judgment in Google Android

This is the second post on the General Court’s judgment in Google Android (T-604/18) delivered earlier this year (which Google has in the meantime appealed to the Court of Justice). As in the first post (available here), I would like to discuss some issues that caught my attention while reading the judgment, rather than summarize … Continue reading Some additional thoughts on the General Court’s judgment in Google Android →

General Court largely upholds the Commission’s decision in Google Android (Case T-604/18)

Earlier this month the General Court of the EU (the “Court”) delivered its much-anticipated judgment on Google’s action for annulment of the Commission’s decision in Case AT.40099 (Google Android) – the decision currently holding the record for the highest antitrust fine ever imposed, namely EUR 4.3 billion. By way of reminder, the Commission found that … Continue reading General Court largely upholds the Commission’s decision in Google Android (Case T-604/18) →

Servizio, competition on the merits, and Google Shopping

This is the second post on the CJEU’s judgment in Servizio, a preliminary ruling concerning the interpretation of Article 102 TFEU (see here for the first post discussing the relevance of consumer welfare and actual effects in establishing an abuse under Article 102 TFEU). In this post I would like to discuss the concept of … Continue reading Servizio, competition on the merits, and Google Shopping →

The judgment of the Court of Justice in Servizio (C-377/20) – Part I

On 12 May, the Court of Justice delivered its eagerly anticipated judgment in Servizio (C-377/20), a preliminary ruling concerning the interpretation of Article 102 TFEU. This is a very interesting ruling for a variety of reasons: First, the conduct in question involved the (allegedly) abusive use of a database, and in particular the discriminatory use … Continue reading The judgment of the Court of Justice in Servizio (C-377/20) – Part I →

EU and UK take on ‘Jedi Blue’ – Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer?

A big development in European competition enforcement in digital markets occurred today as both the European Commission and the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced simultaneously that they are investigating the ‘Jedi Blue’ agreement. This is an agreement between Google and Meta (formerly Facebook) that may have targeted a disruptive advertising technology known as … Continue reading EU and UK take on ‘Jedi Blue’ – Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer? →

General Court of the EU delivers landmark Google Shopping judgment (Google and Alphabet v Commission, T-612/17)

As readers of this blog will know, on Tuesday 10 November 2021 the General Court (“GC”) delivered its judgment in case T-612/17, Google and Alphabet v Commission, largely upholding the Commission’s 2017 decision in Google Search (Shopping) (AT.39741). This is a landmark (and very aggressive) judgment and a major vindication for the Commission. By way … Continue reading General Court of the EU delivers landmark Google Shopping judgment (Google and Alphabet v Commission, T-612/17) →

Some thoughts on the Google Android hearing before the General Court

As readers of this blog probably know, last week saw Google present before the General Court its case for annulling the Google Android decision of the European Commission (famous for the staggering amount of the fine imposed – EUR 4.3 billion). The case number is T-604/18 – Google and Alphabet v Commission. I had the … Continue reading Some thoughts on the Google Android hearing before the General Court →

Google fined € 220 million by French Autorité de la concurrence for breaching competition law in ad tech; offers commitments

Yesterday, the French competition authority (“Autorité de la concurrence”) handed down a landmark decision finding that Google has breached Article 102 TFEU and the equivalent provision of French competition law through anticompetitive conduct in ad tech. The Autorité imposed on Google a fine of €220 million and rendered binding a series of commitments (“engagements”) proposed … Continue reading Google fined € 220 million by French Autorité de la concurrence for breaching competition law in ad tech; offers commitments →

The Commission’s SO to Apple and anticompetitive effects: A Rejoinder

In a recent blog post, Pablo Ibanez Colomo responded to the observations I had made on his reaction to the issuance of a Statement of Objections in the Apple music streaming case. In this post, I would like to briefly react to Pablo’s response, but also raise additional questions over the application of the so-called … Continue reading The Commission’s SO to Apple and anticompetitive effects: A Rejoinder →