Eu competition law and joint purchasing agreements

What is a joint purchasing agreement?
Joint purchasing agreements are agreements under which two or more companies (and indeed, often a significant number of companies) agree to jointly purchase all or part of their product requirements.
Joint purchasing agreements can give rise to significant benefits for consumers and markets..
What is buyer power in EU competition law?
Buyer power represents the other side of competition law, focusing on buying conducts and how a buyer can exert its market power to the detriment of competition..
What is joint selling or purchasing with competitors?
A joint purchasing agreement is likely to harm competition upstream when the members have a significant degree of buying power on the purchasing market.
The exercise of joint buying power may harm upstream competition, and particularly when a given supplier does not have countervailing seller power._{Jul 19, 2023}.
What is the purpose of the EU competition law?
The main objective of the EU competition rules is to enable the proper functioning of the EU's internal market as a key driver for the well-being of EU citizens, businesses and society as a whole..
Buyer power represents the other side of competition law, focusing on buying conducts and how a buyer can exert its market power to the detriment of competition.
Horizontal agreements are cooperation agreements between competitors aimed at cooperating in certain areas, such as research and development (“R&D”), production, purchasing, commercialisation, standardisation, or exchange of information.

Jul 19, 2023A joint purchasing agreement involves any arrangement under which two or more parties agree to jointly source products, whether these are

Are 'joint purchasing agreements' a 'buyer Cartel'?

In particular, it provides advice on the delineation between ‘joint purchasing agreements’ that must be assessed as a restriction of competition by effect under Article 101 TFEU and those arrangements that qualify as a restriction of competition by object, that is to say as a ‘buyer cartel’.

How has EU competition law changed in relation to horizontal co-operation agreements?

STOP PRESS:

EU competition law has changed in relation to horizontal co-operation agreements

with new Horizontal Guidelines published in the Official Journal on 21 July 2023 and new Research and Development and Specialisation Block Exemptions in force from 1 July 2023.
This Practice Note will be updated shortly to reflect the relevant changes.

What is a joint purchasing agreement?

Joint purchasing agreements are agreements under which two or more companies (and indeed, often a significant number of companies) agree to jointly purchase all or part of their product requirements.
Joint purchasing agreements can give rise to significant benefits for consumers and markets.

When does EU competition law apply?

EU competition law applies where an agreement or conduct has an 'effect on trade between Member States'; agreements and conduct with only national effects fall within the scope of the national competition law of the individual Member States.

Eu competition law and joint purchasing agreements

What is a joint purchasing agreement?

What is buyer power in EU competition law?

What is joint selling or purchasing with competitors?

What is the purpose of the EU competition law?

Are 'joint purchasing agreements' a 'buyer Cartel'?

How has EU competition law changed in relation to horizontal co-operation agreements?

What is a joint purchasing agreement?

When does EU competition law apply?