Russia’s state owned gas monopoly Gazprom is planning to send its final proposal to the European Union to settle antitrust charges, the company said in a statement on October 26. The same day it learned that the European Commission (EC) would allow it to use up to 80% of the contentious Opal pipeline.
Sourced from: www.ecoiko.eu
One has to wonder how Lithuania lost its arbitration case against Gazprom: Not many of the Russian export giant’s customers have come away empty-handed after seeking a refund on what they have claimed were over-priced gas deliveries over a prolonged period: in this case from 2006-15. Lithuania managed it though, perhaps by not being specific enough in the claim of unfairness that it submitted to the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce.
This ‘final’ decision was, unsurprisingly, welcomed at Gazprom’s HQ, as it ends a long run of pay-outs, price cuts, and other concessions to the market formalised in new contractual terms.
Sourced from: www.naturalgaseurope.com
Google showdown with the European Commission deepens as regulators finalise Android antitrust charges. Google could be facing European antitrust charges over its Android mobile operating system very soon, following a report in the Financial Times, which claims formal proceedings could be filed as soon as next Wednesday.
Sourced from: www.techweekeurope.co.uk
据报道，欧盟反垄断监管部门已经正式对高通提起反垄断指控，认为后者向客户销售的芯片价格低于生产成本，并且向一家客户付费以让其只使用高通芯片。
欧盟委员会此前已得出初步结论，认为高通曾尝试迫使将其竞争对手Icera退出市场，可能违反了欧盟法律。
欧盟委员会周二在一份电邮声明中称，自2011年以来，高通向一家主要智能机和平板电脑制造商支付了“一大笔钱”，以让后者在其产品中只使用高通的芯片。欧盟委员会并未指出这家制造商的名字。另外，在2009年至2011年，高通可能还以低于成本价销售了部分芯片，以打压竞争对手Icera，后者现在属于英伟达公司。
欧盟委员会向高通发出了两份“异议声明”，分别对高通在上述两方面存在的问题进行了阐述。欧盟称，高通向制造商支付的排他性款项降低了后者购买高通竞争对手芯片的可能性，损害了第三代和第四代移动技术基带芯片的竞争和创新。在此之前，谷歌(微博)、微软和英特尔等也都遭到了欧盟的反垄断调查。此次如果高通被裁定违反了欧盟反垄断法，可能面临最高相当于其全球年收入10%的罚款，并被要求调整商业行为。
欧盟还表示，高通向两家客户以低于成本的价格销售芯片，旨在迫使Icera退出芯片市场，因为当时Icera对高通构成了威胁。Icera在2011年被英伟达以3.67亿美元收购。英伟达在今年9月在英国法院对高通提起诉讼，但并未给出主张细节。
高通有3个月的时间对排他性指控进行回复，有4个月的时间对掠夺性定价指控进行回复。高通还可以申请口头听证(Oral Hearing) 。
同样是今年2月，中国国家发改委对高通滥用市场支配地位，实施排除、限制竞争的垄断行为依法作出9.75亿美元的罚款。上个月，韩国公平贸易委员会也对高通在韩国的专利技术授权方式展开反垄断调查。
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The European Union is preparing an antitrust complaint against Qualcomm over suspected predatory pricing. Qualcomm designs chipsets that power most of the world’s smartphones, licensing its technology across the industry.
Regulators are in the final stages of preparing a so-called statement of objections, based on a complaint by a unit of Nvidia Corp., that asked the EU to act against predatory pricing for mobile-phone chips. A draft complaint in the predatory pricing case, formally opened in July, is being discussed by EU officials.Nvidia filed a lawsuit against Qualcomm in British courts in September.
Qualcomm would add to a growing list of US. technology companies to face EU antitrust action, following probes into Google, Microsoft and Intel Corp. A statement of objections may lead to fines, capped at 10 percent of yearly global revenue, which can be avoided if a company agrees to make changes to business behavior.
将在2015年12月14日全面生效的竞争条例是香港首部跨行业禁止反不正当竞争行为的法律。香港以往都是以开放市场和商务经济出名， 然而竞争条例将迎来巨大的结构性变化。本文继续上文，简述竞争条例调查和执行程序。
香港竞争条例规定竞争委员会和竞争事务审裁处为司法，行政机关。调查程序的启动可以由竞争事务委员会自行决定，还可以通过群众信息来决定。这类信息包括公众的投诉与询问，竞争委员会的研究及市场情报，政府，法院或其他法定机构或主管部门的提示，企业雇员的揭发等等。
竞争委员会一般分两段进行调查：初步评估阶段和调查阶段
香港法院有权对不遵守竞争委员会在调查阶段做出决定的个体，企业采取法律制裁。企业和个体需要提高警惕，注意自己的商业行为，避免违反竞争条例的有关规定。离竞争条例实施还有一个月时间，在香港经营的企业需要审查各类文件，确保没有违反竞争条例有关的规定。如有违反行为，需要及时采取补给措施。企业应意识到竞争条例对香港商业环境带来的影响。
Not here, say Russian regulators.
Sourced through Scoop.it from: recode.net
Russia’s anti-monopoly agency said on Monday Google Inc (GOOGL.O
Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.reuters.com
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