Annual report Dutch competition authority published
(25 mei 2011)
The Dutch competition authority (“NMa”) has published her 2010 annual report with the title ‘Cooperation with the NMa’. The annual report provides an overview of the activities of the NMa in 2010 by way of a schedule with key figures and an extensive explanation of her fields of work. In the annual report different sectors are described. The NMa identifies the sectors processing industry, healthcare, financial and business service, general, energy and transport. Hereafter a short description of the annual report is provided.
In 2010 the NMa has imposed fines for a total amount of Euro 137 million in competition cases. The fines were imposed in 12 cases. Different home care organisations, producers of flour, construction firms and producers of insulated glass received a fine for making illegal arrangements. Wegener, a Dutch media company of regional newspapers, received a fine of an amount of Euro 19 million. This fine was imposed in connection with an acquisition that was approved by the NMa in 2000. The acquisition by Wegener of another media company was approved under the condition that the undertaking would follow an instruction of the NMa that guaranteed the continuing independence of both regional newspapers. Wegener failed to comply with this instruction. In 2010 the NMa also fined for the first time natural persons, as being de facto executives. The NMa holds the possibility to fine de facto executives since 2007. In 2010 the NMa imposed eight times a personal fine.
83 mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures (together ‘concentrations’) were notified in 2010. In comparison, in 2008 129 concentrations were notified. A concentration needs to be notified with the NMa if the turnover of the undertakings involved exceeds the turnover thresholds laid down in article 29 of the Dutch competition act. In that case the NMa considers whether the concentration will effect competition in the Netherlands. Amongst others, the NMa did foresee problems with competition in the healthcare sector. Most concentrations were in the end approved by the NMa after the undertakings involved adjusted their original plans. A few times the undertakings concerned needed a license for their concentration. An undertaking needs to request a license when it appears that the concentration may have an effect on competition and the NMa wishes to investigate those effects further before approving the concentration.
In the annual report the NMa also pays attention to cooperation with the NMa. The NMa indicates that cooperation is an indispensable part of supervision. This does not only concern cooperation with undertakings that are supervised by the NMa, but also cooperation with other supervisors, both national and international, and cooperation with ministers. The NMa indicates that the independence of the NMa is of great importance also when the NMa cooperates with other parties. Special attention is paid by the NMa to the fact that the house of representatives of the Netherlands has the intention to merge the NMa with the telecom supervisor ( the “OPTA”) and the consumers authority. According to the current plans the new authority should be a fact on 1 January 2013. Henk Don, member of the management board of the NMa, indicates that the proposed timeline is feasible, but that still a lot needs to be arranged.