Competition law: Safeguarding the consumer interest. A comparative analysis of US antitrust law and EC competition law

Abstract:
Although it is commonly assumed that consumers benefit from the application of competition law, this is not necessarily always the case. Economic efficiency is paramount; thus, competition law in Europe and antitrust law in the United States are designed primarily to protect business competitors (and in Europe to promote market integration), and it is only incidentally that such law may also serve to protect consumers.

That is the essential starting point of this critique. The author explores the extent to which US antitrust law and EC competition law adequately safeguard consumer interests. Specifically, he shows how the two jurisdictions have gone about evaluating collusive practices, abusive conduct by dominant firms and merger activity, and how the policies thus formed have impacted upon the promotion of consumer interests. He argues that unless consumer interests are directly and specifically addressed in the assessment process, maximization of consumer welfare is not sufficiently achieved.

The author develops legal arguments that can accomplish such goals as:
- replace the economic theory of ‘consumer welfare’ with a principle of consumer well-being
- build consumer benefits into specific areas of competition policy
- assess competition cases so that income distribution effects are more beneficial to consumers
- control mergers in such a way that efficiencies are passed directly to consumers.

He argues that, in the last analysis, the promotion of consumer well-being should be the sole or at least the primary goal of any antitrust regime.

Contents:
1. The Objectives of Competition Policy and the Consumer Interest
2. Goals Underlying US Antitrust Law
3. Goals Underlying EC Competition Law
4. Collusive Practices and Consumer Interests
5. The Legal Exception in Article 81 EC and the Consumer Interest
6. Abusive Pricing and Consumer Interests
7. Abusive Non-Pricing Practices and Consumer Interests
8. Merger Control and Consumer Interests
9. Efficiency Claims in US Merger Control – Safeguarding the Consumer Interest
10. Consumer Interests under the EC Merger Control Regime
11. The Way Forward