EC Adopts Guidelines on Exclusionary Conduct by Dominant Firms

The European Commission has formally adopted new Guidelines detailing its framework for assessing exclusionary abuses of dominance under Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). This represents the first comprehensive guidance on the topic, clarifying the Commission's enforcement priorities and analytical approach for a range of conduct, including predatory pricing, exclusive dealing, tying, and refusal to supply.

For dominant companies and their counsel, these Guidelines are essential reading. They establish a more structured effects-based analysis, providing greater legal certainty for firms assessing whether their commercial practices could be deemed anticompetitive. The framework will be highly influential in proceedings before the Commission and national competition authorities, as well as in litigation before EU and national courts.

Counsel should immediately review clients' existing and planned commercial strategies in light of the new framework to mitigate enforcement risk. The first Commission investigations and court rulings applying these Guidelines will be critical to watch as they will shape the practical application of the new rules.