France’s competition authority increased its scrutiny of mergers in 2021, recording 272 decisions in the year, compared with just 195 in 2020, the agency’s annual report published on Wednesday said. These positions on merger projects between companies also form a major part of the activities of the competition watchdog, which issued a total of 321 opinions and decisions during the year.
As in previous years, in the vast majority of cases (261 decisions), the Autorité authorized operations without requiring commitments from the companies concerned. Only one merger attempt was banned, the Ardian group’s takeover of Société du Pipeline Méditerranée Rhône, which presented both risks:monopoly“and”tariff increase“, detailed in the report.
Awaiting several months, the Authority’s decision on the proposed merger between TF1 and M6 is due.at the end of summer“. On the depressing side, the rue de l’Echelle facility fined 873.7 million euros in 2021, below the 2020 record of 1.79 billion euros, but more than the amounts in recent years.
720 million euros in fines for Google in 2021
Digital giant Google alone was fined €720 million in 2021 in two cases related to copyright and online advertising rights. Overall, the Autorité estimates that its actions have saved the French economy €18.5 billion over the past ten years (2011-2021). A figure obtained by adding together the revenue from fines (€7.6 billion) and the additional costs avoided due to the Authority’s intervention to end anti-competitive behavior (€10.9 billion).
In a context where inflation has risen sharply since the end of 2021 (5.8% over the year in June according to INSEE), the Autorité is finally asserting its actions against cartels and cartels. These practices”lead to significant overstocking situations, which can be difficult for consumers and businesses“, he notes. “To give an order of magnitude, several economic studies conclude that overpricing in Europe averages 17%.“, the policeman of the competition notes.
Source: Le Figaro
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