UK

On 28 April 2022, the Subsidy Control Bill (the “Bill”) received Royal Assent, becoming the Subsidy Control Act 2022 (the “Act”).  The Act lays the basic framework for the new UK-wide subsidy control regime, which is now expected to come into force in Autumn 2022.  Although the Act primarily addresses UK public authorities and their legal obligations relating to the awarding of domestic subsidies, the new regime will be of particular interest to companies wishing to benefit from the more flexible post-Brexit subsidy regime moving forward.
Continue Reading UK Subsidy Control Bill granted Royal Assent

Under Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (“TFEU”), an undertaking may abuse its dominant position by “directly or indirectly imposing unfair purchase or selling prices”.  The UK Court of Appeal recently provided guidance regarding the legal test to determine whether pricing is excessive and unfair.  In March, it dismissed the UK Competition and Markets Authority’s (“CMA”) appeal in the Phenytoin case.
Continue Reading The UK Court of Appeal Clarifies the Legal Test for Excessive Pricing

On 23 August 2018, the UK government published a  notice, committing the UK to a continued application of state aid rules even in the event of no deal being agreed with the EU on the UK’s withdrawal. The notice explains how EU state aid rules would be transposed into UK domestic legislation. The Competition
Continue Reading UK government publishes “no-deal” state aid notice

On 17 June, the UK Competition & Markets Authority (“CMA”) published its reporton the commercial use of consumer data collected by companies.  The CMA began its review of the issue with a call for information in January.

In short, the CMA concludes that, while consumer data presents some characteristics that sets it apart from other data, these characteristics are not unique to consumer data and the markets in which it is collected and used.  As a result, existing competition and market tools are effective to tackle conduct that may give rise to competition concerns in these markets.  The German Monopolies Commission reached a similar conclusion in its digital markets report published on 6 June.

Continue Reading UK CMA Publishes its Report on Commercial Use of Consumer Data