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Türk, Alexander H. --- "Modernisation of EC Antitrust Enforcement" [2006] ELECD 278; in Hofmann, C.H. Herwig; Türk, H. Alexander (eds), "EU Administrative Governance" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2006)

Book Title: EU Administrative Governance

Editor(s): Hofmann, C.H. Herwig; Türk, H. Alexander

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781845422851

Section: Chapter 7

Section Title: Modernisation of EC Antitrust Enforcement

Author(s): Türk, Alexander H.

Number of pages: 29

Extract:

7. Modernisation of EC antitrust
enforcement
Alexander H. Türk

INTRODUCTION

The European Community wields considerable power to regulate the
behaviour of private parties in order to achieve undistorted competition
in the Internal Market. Article 81 ECT prohibits anticompetitive collusion
between undertakings, while Article 82 ECT prohibits the abuse of a
dominant position. Both provisions were initially made operative through
Regulation 17/62.1 Even though national courts and national competition
authorities could enforce Articles 81(1) and 82 ECT, they were not allowed
to apply Article 81(3) ECT, as the Commission had a monopoly to grant
individual exemptions under that provision. This rather centralised form of
administration left the Commission in overall control of the enforcement
of the competition rules. However, the Commission was soon buried under
a huge amount of applications for individual exemptions,2 which due to
lack of resources it was in no position to reduce by way of individual
decisions. A number of devices were employed to alleviate the strain on
the Commission, such as block exemptions, in which the Commission on
the basis of authorisation by the Council provided by way of regulations
exemptions under Article 81(3) ECT for entire categories of agreements.
Even though national authorities could also apply these block exemptions,
their contribution to the enforcement of EC antitrust rules remained ­
despite encouragement from the Commission ­ rather limited.
Since 1 May 2004 the centralised enforcement regime under Regulation
17/62 has been opened up by Regulation 1/2003,3 which ...