Tag: competition

In a request for information regarding new investments at Charleroi airport near Brussels, the European Commission refers to the construction of a second runway, a false news story published by a Belgian website as a 1 April spoof.

China has a positive attitude in its EU relations, but it is also strongly determined to safeguard the interests of its nation and enterprises, Xi Jian, ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Warsaw, told EurActiv Poland.

The European Union plans an investigation into Germany's renewable energy law due to concerns that exemptions for some firms from charges levied on power users breaches competition rules, a German magazine reported yesterday (14 July).

EU regulators asked Visa Europe's customers and rivals to assess its offer to cap inter-bank credit card fees at the same level as competitor MasterCard, a concession intended to end an antitrust investigation and avoid a possible fine.

EU antitrust regulators will unveil draft rules next week aimed at helping victims claim compensation from price-fixing cartels, seeing private lawsuits as an additional tool, on top of fines, to deter companies from breaking antitrust laws.

Google has formally submitted a package of concessions to European Union competition regulators in a strong signal that the world's No. 1 search engine may be able to settle a two-year antitrust investigation without a fine.

EU regulators are investigating whether MasterCard's card fees for non-European cardholders and business practices violate EU antitrust rules, as they stepped up their fight against barriers to cross-border trade.

The rise of independent gas producers in Russia marks a paradigm-shift for the domestic market, and could ultimately challenge Gazprom’s dominant position both at home and in the export markets, argues Danila Bochkarev.

In a major victory for Google Inc., US regulators ended their investigation into the giant internet company and concluded that it had not manipulated its Web search results to hurt rivals. But a parallel probe being conducted by the European Union continues.

Philips, LG Electronics, Samsung SDI and three other firms were fined a record €1.47 billion by EU antitrust regulators on Wednesday (5 December) for fixing prices of TV and monitor cathode-ray tubes for nearly a decade.

Sweden's decision to discriminate between consumers in the same country in order to avoid discriminating between consumers in two different EU member states raises several concerns about the single market, argue Joakim Nergelius and Gustav Lorentz.

The European Commission has delayed a trade case against two Chinese telecom equipment makers that are under scrutiny in the United States for posing a national security threat to the country's telecoms infrastructure.

SPECIAL REPORT / A European Commission paper setting the future direction for industrial policy, to be published next month, marks a departure from the past by setting a clear preference for sectoral focuses. The aim is to avoid the pitfalls of past attempts to create supranational champions.

The European Commission should depart from its current silo thinking and look at specific industrial sectors from a holistic perspective, which takes into account competition rules, state aid and environmental policy in an international context, argues François Gayet.

Plans for an EU-wide legal approach to match-fixing and money laundering in sport are under way, with the European Parliament committee on mafia and organised crime holding a debate on the issue yesterday (17 September).

Following the recent manipulation of the Libor interest rate index, the European Commission yesterday (5 September) launched a consultation to examine regulating financial indexing benchmarks.

EU antitrust regulators yesterday (31 July) charged Visa Europe, the European licensee of Visa Inc, over its cross-border credit card fees, saying they harm competition between banks and lead to higher consumer prices.

Joaquín Almunia, the EU's Competition Commissioner, has laid down an ultimatum for US search giant Google to meet competition concerns as both sides signalled a desire to avoid a repeat of tech giant Microsoft’s mammoth legal dispute with the EU executive.

A Eurostat survey revealing huge labour cost differences across the 27 EU member states unveiled yesterday (24 April) has provided fuel for the French election campaign, where the two contenders are battling over plans for a "social VAT" to protect French producers against social dumping.

Apple and four international publishers have sent proposals to the European Commission to try to solve an e-books anti-trust case, a Commission statement said yesterday (11 April).

The Commission today (3 April) opened an investigation into whether phonemaker Motorola Mobility breached antitrust rules by allegedly over-charging Microsoft and Apple for use of its patents in their products.

Trade unions, companies and member states are digging trenches in preparation for a fight over proposals to increase the social dimension of the EU's Single Market, which the European Commission is expected to launch today.

Members of the European Parliament pledge to stick to the lower range of their proposed price caps for roaming charges. A recent report by national regulators found that providers’ costs for these services are likely to remain below the higher caps originally suggested by the Commission and backed by many member states.