The EU is Changing Antitrust Rules for Large Companies

The European Commission has updated its antitrust rules, giving large companies the ability, in certain cases, to justify their business decisions on the grounds of environmental benefits.

The change concerns Article 102 of EU competition law. This article prohibits companies from using a dominant market position to restrict competitors. It was on the basis of this article that the EU fined Apple, Google and Microsoft.

Under the new rules, the European Commission may take into account whether a company's decision reduces the use of raw materials or pollution, increases the share of recyclable products, or lowers costs for consumers.

The change has also drawn criticism. A group of 28 economists and academics addressed Ursula von der Leyen and the EU's Competition Commissioner, Teresa Ribera. In their view, the new rules will give large companies greater opportunity to justify decisions that hinder competitors on the grounds of environmental benefits.

The European Commission typically considers a company to be dominant if it holds more than a 40% share of the relevant market.

Source: Reuters