Competition authorities, consumer protection authorities and sectoral regulators are increasingly grappling with competition problems stemming from demand-side, rather than supply-side, features of markets. In these markets, structural concerns, such as market concentration or barriers to entry, do not fully explain observed competition problems, including high prices or low service quality. Demand-side factors, such as search and switching costs and behavioural biases, can sometimes play a significant role. Agencies have implemented a variety of measures aimed at tackling these market failures in the course of market studies and consumer protection cases. These remedies have been targeted:
In June 2018, the OECD held a roundtable discussion that focused on the practical challenges of considering non-price effects, namely: identifying circumstances in which demand-side competition problems occur, determining when consumer-focused measures can be used (e.g. market studies, antitrust cases, ancillary measures in merger consent decisions), and designing as well as testing these measures.
SEE ALSO Full list of Competition Policy Roundtables OECD Handbook on Competition Policy in the Digital Age
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RELATED MATERIALS OECD Handbook on Competition Policy in the Digital Age Market Studies and Competition Market study methodologies for competition authorities (2017) The role of market studies as a tool to promote competition (2016) Remedies in Merger Cases (2011) Remedies and Sanctions in Abuse of Dominance Cases (2006)
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RELATED TOPICS Abuse of dominance Enforcement Mergers Pro-competitive policy reforms Digital Economy and Innovation Access all policy roundtables on Mergers |
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