Good evening,
“The effective enforcement of the law has to go hand in hand with the rights of the defence and the requirements of justice and fairness...” – Denis Waelbroeck, Competition and EU Law attorney at Ashurst, Brussels (2009).
Neelie Kroes continues to flex her muscles against European businesses by handing out drastic antitrust fines without proper due process. Despite being on the hot seat last week, defending the EC’s excessive fining policies against intensifying criticism from business and economic experts , Kroes continues her attack against European companies . This week she hit transformer companies with a $99.5 million fine, launched her campaign against Europe’s pharmaceuticals sector with a series of raids, and continued her multi-year long battle with Microsoft. Below is a re-cap of Kroes’ activity for the week:
· ABB, Toshiba Among Cartel Fined $99 Million by EU – Bloomberg, 7/10/09
o ABB Ltd. and Toshiba Corp. were among six companies fined a total of 67.6 million euros ($99 million) by the European Union over claims they divided the European and Japanese markets for electric-power transformers.
o http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=a.hWF9OqGgTU
· Europe and Microsoft Seen Near Antitrust Deal – New York Times, 7/10/09
o European antitrust regulators said Wednesday that they had tentatively accepted Microsoft’s concessions to settle two antitrust cases, which the company said left both organizations free to focus on the next generation of technology giants, including Google, The New York Times’ James Kanter reported.
o http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/07/europe-and-microsoft-seen-near-antitrust-deal/
· EU Antitrust Regulators Raid Drugmakers – Reuters, 6/10/09
o EU antitrust regulators raided several pharmaceutical companies suspected of violating EU antitrust rules on Tuesday as they stepped up their crackdown on drugmakers seen as delaying the launch of cheaper medicines.
o http://www.reuters.com/article/governmentFilingsNews/idUSL636761120091006
· Harde kartelannpak van Kroes onder druk – Het Financieele Dagblad, 6/10/09
o Het harde sanctiebeleid tegen kartels van eurocommissaris Neelie Kroes van mededinging staat onder toenemende druk.
o http://www.fd.nl/artikel/13366750/harde-kartelaanpak-kroes-druk
· Anti-Cartel Enforcement: Criminal and Administrative Policy – Panel Session, 8/10/09
o http://www.nieuwsbank.nl/en/2009/10/08/Q016.htm
Below are highlights of Kroes’ defense of the EC’s competition policy:
· EU’s Kroes Defends Record Antitrust Fines, Procedures – Bloomberg, 9/24/09
o European Union Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes defended her record of fining U.S. companies, including Microsoft Corp. and Intel Corp., for antitrust abuses, saying their rights were respected.
o http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=a_vk3YgmwpzE
· Charlemagne: “A Commission Report-Card” – The Economist, 9/24/09
o An end-of-term assessment of the Brussels team of commissioners.
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