W et t bew erbskommission
Commission de la concurrence
Commissione della concorrenza
International Cooperation and
Capacity Building on Competition:
A Swiss Perspective
7up2 Project Final Meeting
Bangkok, June 28, 2006
Dr. Patrick Krauskopf
Vice-director of the Secretariat of the Swiss Competition Commission
W et t bew erbskommission
Commission de la concurrence
Commissione della concorrenza
Contents
1.
Introduction to Swiss Competition Policy
2.
International Cooperation
3.
Capacity Building
4.
Concluding Remarks
2
W et t bew erbskommission
Commission de la concurrence
Commissione della concorrenza
1. Introduction to Swiss Competition Policy



Economic context: An increasing globalized
economy
Specific features of Switzerland
Tasks and aims of the Swiss competition
authorities
3
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Europe 2004
4
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Commissione della concorrenza
GDP per Capita 2004
60 000
50 000
40 000
30 000
20 000
10 000
0
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Source: OECD Factbook 2006
5
W et t bew erbskommission
Commission de la concurrence
Commissione della concorrenza
Trade Balance:
Export minus Import of Services
Billion US Dollars, average 2001-2004
Source: OECD Factbook 2006
6
W et t bew erbskommission
Commission de la concurrence
Commissione della concorrenza
Trade Balance:
Export minus Import of Goods
Billion US Dollars, 2004
Source: OECD Factbook 2006
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W et t bew erbskommission
Commission de la concurrence
Commissione della concorrenza
Tasks and Aims of the Swiss
Competition Authorities
•
The Competition
Commission (Comco)
•
Takes decisions
•
Addresses
recommendations and
reports
•
Renders opinions
•
The Secretariat
•
Examines
•
Prepares decisions
•
Gives legal advice
•
Observes markets
•
Gathers information
•
Conducts dawn raids
and hearings
•
Is responsible for
contacts with other
authorities
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2. International Cooperation

Instruments of international cooperation on
competition law and policy

Commitment of competition agreements

Enforcement cooperation

Swiss perspective
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Instruments of International Cooperation
on Competition Law and Policy

Agreements on competition law enforcement

Mutual legal assistance treaties

Friendship, commerce, and navigation treaties

Technical cooperation agreements


Free trade, customs union, economic partnership,
or common market agreements
Multilateral and plurilateral instruments
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Commitment of Competition Agreements

Hard law:
•
Typically creates obligations that are legally binding
•

Soft law:
•
Typically creates undetermined obligations with
general political promises
•

Ex: Mutual legal assistance treaties
(US-Canada, US-UK)
Compliance discretionary
Memorandum of understanding
•
Definition of specific rules and responsibilities
•
Non-binding
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Enforcement Cooperation (1)


Cooperation agreements upon enforcement cooperation
•
Cooperation between the EU and the USA
•
Developing countries
Impediments to enforcement cooperation
•
Differences in competition laws, economic
doctrines, enforcement practices or procedures
•
Confidentiality accorded under national leniency
programs to information from leniency applications
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Enforcement Cooperation (2)


Factors conducive to enforcement cooperation
•
Shared perception of common interest
•
Mutual benefit
Factors strengthening enforcement cooperation
•
Development of common standards
•
Balance between transparency and the
protection of confidential information
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Swiss Perspective
No specific agreement on cooperation activities
with other authorities
 ICN
 OECD Recommendations
• Recommendation on cooperation between
antitrust authorities

• Recommendation
hard-core cartels

on cooperation against
Bilateral agreement on air transport between
Switzerland and EU
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OECD Recommendations


Recommendations on cooperation between antitrust
authorities
•
1986, revised in 1995
•
Basic tools for cooperation: notification of cases,
exchange of information, coordination of action,
consultation, conciliation
•
Non-binding
Recommendation on cooperation against hard-core cartels
•
1998
•
Particular forms of cooperation: positive comity,
document sharing ...
•
Non-binding
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Bilateral Agreement on Air Transport
Between the EU and Switzerland
 06/01/2002
 Reciprocal liberalization of air traffic rights

EU competition rules are also applied in
Switzerland by the EU Commission
 Switzerland remains competent concerning state
aids


Cooperation for enforcement and procedural
measures
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W et t bew erbskommission
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3. Capacity Building


Main components
•
Development of legal and regulatory framework
•
Comprehensive human resource development
•
Comprehensive institutional (or organizational)
development
•
Development of information systems
Continuing process!
Swiss capacity building programs
•
Recent past
•
Ongoing
•
Planned
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Swiss Capacity Building Programs –
Recent Past


Visit of Egyptian competition authorities
Dawn raids: Instruction by several European
member states‘ competition authorities
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Swiss Capacity Building Programs - Ongoing

COMPAL program

7up2 project

Working groups within ICN (among others)
•
Steering group
•
Merger working group
•
-
Notification and procedure
-
Investigative techniques
Cartel working group
-
General framework
-
Enforcement techniques
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Swiss Capacity Building Programs - Planned

Technical assistance to newly created European
and non-European agencies

Working groups within ICN

Organization of ICN annual conference in 2009
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6. Concluding Remarks (1)

Need to set forth a formal legal framework in the
form of bilateral or multilateral cooperation
agreements with the following objectives:
•
Build a closer relationship and confidence
between competition authorities
•
Promote a convergent approach towards
methodical issues
•
Reduce the inefficiencies of overlapping
investigations
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W et t bew erbskommission
Commission de la concurrence
Commissione della concorrenza
6. Concluding Remarks (2)
Dans la vie, il n‘y a pas de solutions,
il y a des forces en marche:
il faut les créer,
et les solutions suivent.
(Saint Exupéry – Vol de nuit)
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W et t bew erbskommission
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Commissione della concorrenza
Thank you
for
your attention!
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