Resale Price Maintenance: A Debate About Competition Policy in Europe?

"The objective of this article is to consider whether developments in economic thinking, and the Supreme Court’s Opinion in Leegin, might, or should, prompt a rethink or equivalent U-turn in competition policy towards RPM in the EU. In order to address this question, the article commences by examining the arguments and factors that led the Supreme Court to overturn such an entrenched and long-standing rule against RPM. It then considers whether these factors, or other similar factors, might be influential in the development of EU competition policy. Section B thus focuses on Leegin—the background to the case, the views of proponents and opponents of the per se rule, the Supreme Court’s opinion and how the ruling is likely to affect the scrutiny of RPM provisions in the US in the future. Section C then examines how RPM is currently treated under the EC competition rules. It considers the developments that have moulded present policy, whether a change in that policy is likely or desirable and how any change in policy might occur. Some conclusions are drawn in section D."