Standards at stake: the EUโ€™s plan to balance SEP licensing and innovation

The EUโ€™s Standard-Essential Patent (SEP) proposal aims to streamline licensing but critics warn it could stifle innovation, weaken R&D incentives, and complicate involvement for SMEs.

New rules to build corporate giants wonโ€™t reverse EU decline, officials say

Europe’s competition enforcers are alarmed by talk of changing merger rules to allow big firms in key industries.

EU and UK agree on cooperation in antitrust investigations

The agreement is the first that would allow national competition authorities from EU countries to cooperate directly with a competition authority outside the bloc.

How the European cement industry can become competitive and clean [Promoted content]

Europe trails other regions on cement decarbonisationโ€”including the US, Latin America, and Canadaโ€”because of outdated industry standards that are not are not technology neutral. This blocks innovative low-carbon technologies from the market and prevent…

Margrethe Vestager says she has โ€˜no plansโ€™ to run for office in Denmark

New biography looks at the longtime EU competition czar.

How a law on truck movements divided the EU

The EU’s top court delivers a ruling on an exceptionally fierce legal fight this week.

How the EUโ€™s landmark Apple tax ruling gave Ireland โ‚ฌ13bn it didnโ€™t want

After losing a court case, Ireland stands to gain a huge amount of money it fought not to gain and is unsure how to spendWhen the EUโ€™s top court gave its landmark ruling this week on a โ€œsweetheartโ€ tax arrangement with the worldโ€™s biggest company, the …

โ‚ฌ13B legal win over Apple made me cry, says shocked EU competition chief

Margrethe Vestager said sheโ€™d been told to brace for defeat on Appleโ€™s challenge against tax state aid finding.

Top EU court to rule in โ‚ฌ13bn Apple case that could hit โ€˜sweetheartโ€™ tax deals

Long-running legal battle began in 2016 after blocโ€™s competition chief said iPhone maker had benefited from unfair tax breaks in IrelandThe EUโ€™s top court will rule whether the European Commission was right to demand that โ‚ฌ13bn (ยฃ11bn) in โ€œillegalโ€ tax…

Defense firms need full access to EU cash as Putin haunts Europe, Draghi says

Looming threats must spark major rethink of European defense policy, according to draft of new report seen by POLITICO.

Closing the backdoor: The new TurkStream is here. Can the West stop it?

Martin Vladimirov is director of the Energy and Climate Program at the Center for the Study of Democracy. Announcing its plans for what could be called TurkStream 2 on Aug. 21, Turkey finally dropped all pretenses. According to the countryโ€™s energy minister, Alparslan Bayraktar, the state-owned gas monopoly BOTAลž would now be able export around [โ€ฆ]

Sun, sand and strikes: Italyโ€™s beach clubs shut down to protest EU law

Beach licenses in Italy are set to be awarded through a competitive bidding process, threatening decades-old family businesses.

US, UK, and EU share views on competition in AI development

The UK, US, and EU competition authorities specified common fair competition principles on foundation artificial intelligence (AI) models like ChatGPT but did not commit to joint action, according to a joint statement on Tuesday (23 July).ย 

Football bosses ask EU to intervene in FIFAโ€™s new match schedule

Football players and leagues filed a complaint with the European Commission to try to rein in footballโ€™s governing body.

Lufthansa wins EU approval for its Italian airline deal

BRUSSELS โ€“ Lufthansa won European Union approval to buy a stake in Italyโ€™s state-owned carrier ITA Airways after last-ditch concessions eased high tensions between Rome and Brussels. The German airline, already the biggest in Europe by revenue, now adds Italian routes to its network, guaranteeing the future of the loss-making Italian airline, the successor to [โ€ฆ]

EU Competition Commissioner says Appleโ€™s decision to pull AI from EU shows anticompetitive behavior

Apple’s decision not to launch its own artificial intelligence (AI) features in the EU is a “stunning declaration” of its anticompetitive behavior, EU Commission Vice-President Margrethe Vestager said on Thursday (27 June).

Apple found in breach of EU competition rules

European Commission finds iPhone maker broke new laws designed to protect smaller competitors against big tech platformsBusiness live โ€“ latest updatesApple has been found to be in breach of sweeping new EU laws designed to allow smaller companies to co…

Apple gets EU warning over app store rules

The iPhone maker is the first company to be told it may not be complying with the EU’s Digital Markets Act.

EU competition chief warns against Franco-German push to loosen merger rules

European Commission Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager has warned against the idea of watering down competition rules to allow for โ€œEuropean championsโ€, an age-old idea that could gain new momentum as part of an expected โ€œcompetitiveness dealโ€…

Lufthansaโ€™s ITA deal set to get EU approval

Clearance will diffuse tensions between Brussels and Rome over a deal that keeps Italian carrier flying.

Lufthansa ups its offer to try to win over EU on ITA deal

Italy has pushed hard for the deal to be cleared.

Microsoft to pay off cloud industry group to end EU antitrust complaint

Possible deal involves a multimillion-dollar payout to cloud association backed by Amazon.

Protecting the conditional autonomy of governing bodies in sport from review โ€˜from a competition standpointโ€™: how the Court should decide its pending cases on the transfer system, the regulation of agents and club (re-)location.

 Stephen Weatherill

Jacques Delors Professor of
European Law (Emeritus), Faculty of Law and Somerville College, University of
Oxford

Photo: Lassana Diarra, by ะ ั‹ะฑะฐะบะพะฒะฐ ะ•ะปะตะฝะฐ, on Wikimedia Commons

 

In preparing this paper I have
bene…

Ryanairโ€™s Oโ€™Leary backs Lufthansaโ€™s Italian deal as long as he gets concessions

Ryanair rivals Lufthansa as Europe’s biggest airline but its CEO says he can back its Italian deal to avoid ITA going bankrupt.

Does the EU have what it takes to fight China on green tech?

If you arenโ€™t sure what the difference is between an anti-subsidy probe and an investigation into foreign subsidies, we’ve got you covered.

EU and US vow to team up against China, but canโ€™t hide the cracks

Trade and tech dialogue would likely not survive a Trump return โ€” and that would threaten fragile transatlantic solidarity on how to deal with China.

Apple gets โ‚ฌ1.8B EU antitrust fine for abusive app terms

Itโ€™s the first time the tech giant has been fined by the European Commission.

EU to fine Apple โ‚ฌ500M over music streaming: Report

The expected move would be the European Commission’s first fine against the US tech giant, the FT reports.

Top EU officials have toxic โ€˜forever chemicalsโ€™ in their blood

Margrethe Vestager and Frans Timmermans among officials tested as EU debates potential ban.

Football Revolution: how do the Courtโ€™s rulings of 21 December 2023 affect UEFAโ€™s role as a โ€˜gatekeeperโ€™?

Steve Weatherill, Somerville
College and Faculty of Law, University of Oxford

Photo credit: Werner100359,
via Wikimedia
Commons

 

Summary

The Court of Justiceโ€™s rulings of
21 December 2023 found practices associated with prior approval of new…

Footballโ€™s UEFA and FIFA lose EU court bid to halt breakaway Super League

The organizations were ‘abusing a dominant position,’ says Court of Justice.

Adobe abandons Figma takeover after Brussels, UK opposition

EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager had come out against the deal.

Apple offers to let rivals access tap-and-go tech in EU antitrust caseย 

Reuters exclusively reported that Apple (AAPL.O) has offered to let rivals access its tap-and-go mobile payments systems used for mobile [โ€ฆ]

The post Apple offers to let rivals access tap-and-go tech in EU antitrust caseย  appeared first on Reuters News Agency.

EU Commission supports FIFA in row with football agents

Brussels delivers blow to agents by supporting cap on fees as dispute heads for EU’s top court.

Back to the โ€˜frituurโ€™: A guide to Brusselsโ€™ โ€˜fritesโ€™

Armed only with a healthy appetite and a small wooden fork, our intrepid reporter set out to answer the question: Where can you get the best fries?

EIB presidency race: Vestager open to EU financing of nuclear and defence

With the race for the presidency of the European Investment Bank (EIB) in its final stretch, Danish candidate and former EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager said she would be ready to consider EIB financing for defence and nuclear.

Vestager faces uphill battle to win French support for EIB top job

The wind in Paris is blowing in favor of Spain’s Nadia Calviรฑo, but Macron is notorious for taking last-minute decisions.

Reynders to take over as EU competition chief

Reynders will step in as Vestager goes on leave to chase EIB post.

Spainโ€™s La Liga files EU complaint over Qatar funding of French club Paris St-Germain

The Spanish league alleges that Qatar’s investment has given PSG an unfair advantage.

Not another American! Meet the new favorite for EU competition economist

Florian Ederer is a newly minted U.S. citizen but also an Austrian โ€” and has no history of consulting for Big Tech companies.

Margrethe Vestager on failed US hire: โ€˜Shit happensโ€™

EU competition commissioner strikes stoic tone in first comments after the Fiona Scott Morton fiasco.

French rejection of top American economist is a blow to liberal Europe

Emmanuel Macron’s effective veto of the hiring of Fiona Scott Morton shows just how much France rules the roost in Brussels.