Commission initiates study on vertical mergers in the new economy
The European Commission's Enterprise Directorate-General is inviting tenders for a study on the competition assessment of vertical mergers and vertical agreements in the new economy. The objective of the study is to establish a comprehensive analysis of the evolution of firms' distribution strategy in the context of the internet economy and the impact of such evolution on the traditional selective or exclusive distribution systems. It also requests an identification of the potential pro-competitive and anti-competitive effects of vertical agreements and vertical mergers between firms that try to take advantage of the internet economy and an evaluation of the adequacy of the present competition rules to limit these anti-competitive effects without preventing the development of innovative and competitive enterprises. Moreover, for the EU and the US, a comparison of the competition policy approach towards vertical agreements and vertical mergers is required with clear conclusions on the potential impact of these regulations on the strategy which a firm will tend to adopt.Tenders should be delivered to: European Commission Enterprise Directorate-General Unit A4 Att: Geert Dancet SC 15, 4/41 Rue de la Loi / Wetstraat 200 B-1049 Brussels Fax: +32-2-296 6814