Gatekeeper meaning

Antitrust Court of Justice dismisses appeal relating to the calculation of the fine in the pre-stressing cartel case The Court of Justice has delivered its ruling in Case C-70/23, Westfälische Drahtindustrie and Others v Commission, on an appeal brought against the General Court’s judgment in Case T-275/20. That judgment had rejected an action seeking annulment of the Commission’s decision of 30 June 2010, as later amended on 30 September 2010, in the pre-steel cartel matter (AT.38344) (the Commission’s 2010 decision). In 2010, the Commission imposed fines on Westfälische Drahtindustrie GmbH (WDI) and Westfälische Drahtindustrie Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG (WDV), holding WDI jointly and severally liable with WDV and Pampus, for their participation in a cartel covering the supply of pre-stressing steel. On 15 July 2015, the General Court dismissed an appeal against the Commission’s 2010 decision (the General Court’s 2015 judgment). While it considered that the Commission had erred in its assessment of arguments on ability to pay, the General Court, exercising its unlimited jurisdiction, concluded...

Amazon Ads and the Digital Markets Act 31 January 2024 The Digital Markets Act (DMA) is an EU regulation that sets out a series of obligations and takes effect on 6 March 2024. In September 2023, Amazon was named a ‘gatekeeper’. Since that designation, Amazon Ads has worked collaboratively with the European Commission and is introducing changes to ensure compliance. For example, we are increasing the level of detail within our pricing reports. Currently, our advertiser and publisher customers enjoy real-time visibility of extensive pricing information. From 6 March 2024, advertisers and publishers running campaigns in the EU will be able to access...

Mergers The Commission cleared, following phase I reviews: Exyte GmbH’s purchase of Kinetics Holdings GmbH (M.11559)—see press release; Alten SA’s takeover of sole control of Worldgrid France SAS and assets of the Worldgrid Smart Energy Solutions segment (M.11632)—see Midday Express; a joint venture by Egis Airport Operation SAS, Egis Investment Partners France II SCA, Bouygues Construction Airport Concessions and Impact V S.à r.l. (M.11705)—see Midday Express; and joint control of Hargreaves Lansdown by Nordic Capital XI Limited, CVC Capital Partners plc and Platinum Ivy B 2018 RSC (M.11716)—see Midday Express. Notifications: CVC/Fidelio/Odevo (M.11735) (simplified); Sonoco/Eviosys (M.11637) (simplified); VTTI/SNAM/ALNG (M.11568) (normal). NOTE—For live mergers, see EU mergers—ongoing cases tracker. State aid The Commission approved, under EU state aid rules, €102m French support to modernise the Naye terminal at the port of Saint-Malo—see Midday Express. NOTE—For live State aid cases, see EU State aid decisions—ongoing cases tracker. Digital markets Case T-357/23, Opera v Commission: action before the General Court against the decision...

CASE HUB ARCHIVED —this hub records the position as at the decision date of 24 June 2024; it is no longer maintained. See also: timeline, commentary and related cases. Case facts Outline European Commission inquiry under Article 101 TFEU and/or Article 102 TFEU into the use of Apple’s App Store by developers offering apps that directly compete with apps or services supplied by Apple (excluding music streaming apps or ebooks/audiobooks apps, for which separate proceedings were initiated in cases AT.40437 and AT.40652). Latest development On 24 June 2024, the Commission stated it had closed the investigation...

The in-house function, within a fully aligned, value-creating setting, does far more than dispatching legal know‑how reactively to deal with colleagues’ discrete questions. Though that might sound self-evident, mapping the journey from a reactive service to a proactive, value-enhancing partner is not always straightforward. The path, its milestones and everyday behaviours for shifting from reactive to proactive are, in many settings, anything but clear. That ambiguity often persists. Collaboration with a company’s marketing team offers a revealing example. Marketers often see themselves as inventive, energetic, rapid in execution, ‘plugged-in’ and operating at the forefront of presentation and ideas. Without leaning on clichés, they may presume that lawyers do not necessarily bring comparable attributes to their craft. Back to first principles A legal team forms part of the assurance function. Stating this clearly helps embed both the cooperative and oversight dimensions when advising ‘front line’ colleagues, including those in marketing. The key contextual message, in essence, is to articulate that every organisation bears a corporate duty to observe laws,...

This Practice Note sets out a high-level guide to Regulation (EU) 2022/1925, the EU Digital Markets Act (DMA), viewed from an Irish standpoint. It addresses the DMA’s effects on the Irish marketplace, outlines the suite of rules the DMA introduces, explains how gatekeepers are designated, and describes the European Commission’s enforcement toolkit under the regime. It also considers worldwide compliance expectations, the forthcoming steps towards rolling out the DMA, and the key dates for meeting the obligations it imposes. The Digital Markets Act On 15 December 2020, the European Commission (the Commission) unveiled proposals for two EU-wide measures to govern digital services-the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act. On 27 October 2022, the Commission completed adoption of the DMA by publishing its text in the EU Official Journal, triggering a six‑month transition period before the DMA became enforceable on 2 May 2023. The DMA aims to steer the treatment of online platforms across the EU by establishing a consistent standard across Europe. It targets various categories...