Block Exemption Regulation Horizontal Agreements

April 8th, 2021  |  Published in Uncategorized

In addition, the Commission has published guidelines on the applicability of Article 101 of the TFUE to horizontal cooperation agreements or `horizontal guidelines`. These are particularly useful in determining what type of cooperation is considered beneficial and therefore exempt and what is considered suspicious. The new horizontal guidelines revised existing guidelines on the applicability of Article 101 of the TFUE to cooperation agreements and set out a framework for the analysis of the most common forms of horizontal cooperation agreements. While these guidelines are not binding on the courts, they provide valuable insight into the relevant criteria to be considered when self-assessing horizontal agreements. Legislation for horizontal agreements. The “safe port” of the standard-setting procedure was maintained in the updated chapter and presents three situations in which the ban on EU anti-competitive agreements would not apply. The procedure for adopting the standard, which provides unlimited access to the standard, is open and transparent; where there is a clear and balanced IP policy, including disclosure of good faith of essential intellectual property rights and an irrevocable obligation to license on reasonable and non-discriminatory terms (FRAND). Horizontal cooperation agreements (“cooperation agreements”) are agreements between real or potential competitors operating in the market at the same level of production or distribution. There are six general categories of cooperation agreements, including research and development (“R and D”); Production; Purchases Marketing standardization, the usual concepts of the sector; Exchange of information (“IE”). Already in 2011, the body of European electronic communications regulators (ORECE)[1] established in a report on the sharing of infrastructure and radio spectrum on mobile networks[1] that passive sharing agreements are broadcast in all European Member States. Such agreements are now commonplace and do not raise competition issues. However, joint valuation agreements were also examined. The Commission has introduced additional flexibility by adding joint operating agreements with exclusive licences.

Therefore, a scenario in which only one party can manufacture and distribute products subject to the cooperation agreement on the basis of an exclusive license granted by the other parties is now covered. However, to the extent that vertical agreements are concluded between competitors, they must be evaluated in accord with the principles applicable to horizontal agreements. It is therefore part of this consultation. The adoption of standardization agreements is now essential in the context of globalization and the digitization of markets. Technical standards and specifications are increasingly in demand in a digital world. In addition, the data economy requires additional standards for data exchange, access to third-party data and the way forward for new technologies and companies such as IoT, AI, etc. The facilitation of such horizontal agreements between European competitors, under certain conditions, will allow stakeholders to compete with non-European players within the current geopolitical ecosystem. It will also solve current problems in digital markets, such as barriers to entry, bottlenecks, quasi-monopolies, conglomerate effects, etc.

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