Latin American and Caribbean Competition Forum 2019

Across Latin America and the Caribbean, competition law offenders are often subject to fines. These fines can play a critical role in deterring anti-competitive conduct such as collusion and abuse of dominance by making unlawful conduct less profitable. Even when other penalties are present, fines are an important element of the competition authority’s toolkit. The existence of substantial fines can, in the case of cartels, contribute to instability of the cartel conduct by increasing the likelihood of leniency applications. Since 2013, when the LACCF last examined the issue of fining methodologies, much has changed, not only in the region but also internationally, in fining methodologies, guidelines and legislation. This session reviewed current fining methodologies in a variety of jurisdictions, highlighting both similarities and differences in the way fines are calculated and applied.

Background note EN | ES

Call for contributions EN | ES

Platform markets are not new: competition authorities have been assessing competition in radio, television, newspaper, and classified advertisement markets, among others, since the introduction of competition law. However, with digitalisation, the size of these markets, and the frequency with which competition authorities will be required to assess them, is on the rise. Competition authorities face the challenge of applying the growing academic literature on platform markets in the context of the usual constraints of case work; namely, limited time, access to data and resources. This session focussed on practical approaches for assessing platform competition for mergers and antitrust cases, and highlight the types of platform markets that may be particularly relevant in a Latin American and Caribbean context.

Background note EN | ES

Call for contributions EN | ES