Strengthening antitrust and anti unfair competition compliance to create a fair business environment
In the market environment where new scenarios, new forms of business, and new models continue to emerge, the constraints of the fair competition review system are also constantly strengthening. Deepening antitrust and anti unfair competition compliance has become a key area of national concern. For Chinese enterprises, adjusting their behavior according to rules is the most sustainable and long-term development strategy.
In 2023, from a policy perspective, the four supporting regulations of the Anti Monopoly Law, namely the Regulations on Preventing the Abuse of Administrative Power to Exclude and Restrict Competition, the Regulations on Prohibiting Monopoly Agreements, the Regulations on Prohibiting the Abuse of Market Dominant Position, and the Regulations on the Examination of Business Concentration, have been successively implemented, optimizing regulatory enforcement procedures and strengthening the legal responsibilities of relevant parties. The release of the Anti Monopoly Compliance Guidelines for Business Concentration focuses on the regulatory characteristics of business concentration and the compliance needs of enterprises, providing useful references for enterprises in terms of compliance risk, compliance management, and compliance protection. Guide enterprises to establish and improve internal compliance management systems based on their own conditions such as business scale, management mode, concentration frequency, and compliance system, and enhance their compliance management capabilities. The Office of the Anti Monopoly and Unfair Competition Commission of the State Council and the State Administration for Market Regulation have proposed the establishment and improvement of the "three letters and one letter" system for anti-monopoly, timely prevention and suppression of monopolistic behavior, protection of fair market competition, and promotion of accelerating the construction of a unified national market.
From an industry perspective, anti-monopoly investigations in the pharmaceutical industry continue to deepen. The National Medical Insurance Administration recently announced that since the beginning of 2023, it has interviewed a total of 23 companies in 2023, covering 30 varieties, and reducing the average price of drugs by over 40%, in response to issues such as monopolistic control and cost inflation of some drugs by a few companies. At the end of last year, the case of four pharmaceutical companies colluding to monopolize the market and facing huge fines also indicates that the government's anti-monopoly efforts are gradually upgrading, and the supervision of the pharmaceutical industry is moving towards a more standardized path.
The anti monopoly awareness in the automotive industry is also constantly increasing. 16 well-known car companies, including BYD, Tesla, NIO, and Ideal, have jointly signed the "Commitment Letter for Maintaining Fair Competition Market Order in the Automotive Industry.". The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers has issued a statement stating that the commitment letter "not to disrupt the fair competition order of the market with abnormal prices" violates the spirit of the Anti Monopoly Law and has been deleted, which has attracted industry attention. Under the leadership of the association, several well-known automotive companies will take the lead in strictly adhering to the Anti Monopoly Law and relevant administrative regulations, guidelines, and rules, independently pricing and fair competition, and jointly contribute to the standardized, healthy, and innovative development of the industry.
From the perspective of case guidance, in December 2023, the Supreme People's Court issued 8 specialized guidance cases on intellectual property, many of which involved monopoly disputes and unfair competition disputes. This reflects that the people's courts actively respond to the needs of the times, face the legal challenges brought by new technologies, continuously improve the recognition standards for new types of unfair competition and monopolistic behavior, and provide useful guidance for industrial development.
At the just held National Market Supervision Work Conference, it was emphasized that we should deepen the special action of anti-monopoly and anti-unfair competition law enforcement in the field of people's livelihood, refine and improve the rules of the anti-monopoly and anti-unfair competition system, and increase the promotion of fair competition and compliance among operators. Optimize the environment for innovative development, guide platform enterprises to compete in an orderly manner, stimulate the internal motivation of platform operators, and enhance the level of normalized supervision.
Huang Yong, Director of the Competition Law Center at the University of International Business and Economics, stated that with the strengthening of antitrust enforcement efforts, it is believed that in 2024, antitrust enforcement will become more normalized and professional, creating a better competitive environment for various market entities to invest and develop in a standardized and healthy manner.
"The cooperation and formation of the Anti Monopoly Law and the Anti Unfair Competition Law will jointly maintain the competitive order of the platform economy, and provide strong guarantees for the construction of a modern economic system, a high standard market system, and a higher level of open economic new system, promoting the healthy development of the market economy."