On 11 April 2024, the CMA published an update paper (the Update Paper) in relation to its initial review of AI Foundation Models (FMs).  An accompanying technical update report (the Technical Update Report) was published on 16 April 2024, providing further detail on market developments and feedback from stakeholder engagement.  These updates follow the CMA’s September 2023 initial report into the same topic (the Initial Report). Summary Although the CMA recognizes that large technology firms have been “drivers of innovation in this space,”[1] it is “concerned that the FM sector is de ..read more

On 22 April 2024, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a Feedback Statement on the potential competition impacts from data asymmetry between Big Tech firms and firms in financial services. On the same day, Nikhil Rathi, the FCA’s Chief Executive, delivered a speech at the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum on ‘Navigating the UK’s Digital Regulation Landscape’. The Feedback Statement marks a significant milestone in the FCA’s regulatory consideration of this topic, which previously included: (i) the FCA’s October 2022 Discussion Paper on the potential competition impacts of Big Tec ..read more

On February 27, 2024, the French Competition Authority (“FCA”) published its roadmap for 2024-2025 as every year,[1] outlining its enforcement priorities for the year ahead.  The FCA emphasized the need to take action in the same key areas of interest as in 2023[2]: (i) the digital economy, (ii) sustainability and the ecological transition, and (iii) the protection of purchasing power.  Antitrust challenges in the digital markets The FCA emphasized that it would actively pursue anticompetitive practices by digital companies. Substantively, it pinpointed the risk of maj ..read more

On 27 March 2024, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced that fashion retailers ASOS, Boohoo and George at Asda (the Retailers) has signed undertakings to ensure that the environmental claims they make are accurate and clear (the Undertakings).  The announcement was accompanied by an open letter to the fashion retail sector (the Letter).  The  Letter warns businesses to act in accordance with the CMA’s 2021 Green Claims Code and to take note of the Undertakings, or risk incurring significant monetary penalties once the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers ..read more

Cleary Gottlieb counsel Cunzhen Huang and associates Huanbing Xu and Yiming Sun co-authored “China’s Review of Semiconductor Transactions,” which appeared in the latest issue of the CPI Antitrust Chronicle, published by Competition Policy International. Read the article here ..read more

On 25 January 2024, the Microeconomics Unit[1] of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published a report examining competition and market power in UK labour markets (the Report).  The Report is the Unit’s first published work, covering developments in the labour markets over the last two decades.  Over this period, labour markets have changed significantly through the rise of flexible working and the gig economy (defined as labour services contracted through digital platforms), changes in restrictive covenants (contract clauses that restrict what workers can do after they lea ..read more

In the latest installment of Cleary Gottlieb’s Antitrust Review podcast, host Nick Levy is joined by Maria Jaspers, who heads the European Commission’s Cartels Directorate. Their conversation covers an array of topics, including the EC’s enforcement practice and leniency program, dawn raids in a digital world, the settlement procedure, follow-on damages actions, global enforcement, and much more. Listen below, or select from the following links: Amazon Music Apple Podcasts Spotify ..read more

On February 13, 2024, the European Commission approved the acquisition of Asiana Airlines by Korean Air Lines (“Korean Air”),[1] following an in-depth Phase II probe and extensive remedy discussions.  Background In November 2020, Korean Air, South Korea’s largest airline (by fleet size), announced the acquisition of Asiana, the second largest South Korean airline, which had come under increasing financial pressure in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Korean Air formally notified the transaction to the Commission on January 13, 2023.  During Phase I, the Commission identified o ..read more

On 8 March, the Competition Appeal Tribunal (the “CAT”) handed down a third judgment in two years in the hydrocortisone litigation (the“Judgment”),[1] overturning its own Hydrocortisone (Cartel Infringements) judgment of 29 September 2023.  The CAT found that the provisional findings of the Hydrocortisone (Cartel Infringements) judgment were “unsafe in the most fundamental way” as a result of “a very serious failure of due process” (Judgment, para. 10), referring to a failure by the CMA to cross-examine two Appellant witnesses on a point that formed the basis of the CMA’s case. The CAT ov ..read more

On 12 March 2024, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) provisionally decided to refer the veterinary sector for a formal market investigation.  The CMA has identified a range of competition concerns, including the effects of recent consolidation in the sector. The CMA’s concerns The CMA began an initial review of the veterinary sector in September 2023 to seek views on a number sector-wide issues that had come to its attention in the context of merger investigations.  Having carried out an initial review, the CMA has reached a provisional decision to open a formal market in ..read more