European Commission Publishes Its Final Report On The e-Commerce Sector Inquiry (Digital Content)

On 10 May 2017, the European Commission published its final report on its e-commerce sector inquiry (the "Report") in which it identifies business practices that may restrict competition and limit consumer choice in relation to consumer goods and digital content. The Report is accompanied by a voluminous Staff Working Document, which summarises the main findings of its sector inquiry and incorporates comments submitted by stakeholders during the public consultation. The findings of the Report largely mirror those of the Commission's initial findings which were published in September 2016 (See VBB on Competition Law, Volume 2016, No. 9, available at www.vbb.com).

The Commission's findings are based on evidence gathered from nearly 1,800 companies operating in e-commerce of consumer goods and digital content and involve around 8,000 distribution contracts.