1 DESCRIBE THE PRINCIPAL COMPETITION RULES GOVERNING
INFORMATION EXCHANGE IN YOUR JURISDICTION.
Information exchanges are assessed under article 101 of the
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). The first
step is to analyse whether the information exchange restricts
competition under article 101(1); the second, to assess the extent
to which it is possible to raise efficiency arguments under article
101(3) (see question 8).
The constituent elements of article 101(1) are as follows:
Existence of an agreement, concerted practice or decision by
associations of undertakings
Information exchanges between competitors are typically assessed
as concerted practices under article 101(1) TFEU, which is a looser
form of coordination not requiring the establishment of a binding
agreement. There are three key components to a concerted practice:
concertation; subsequent conduct on the market; and a relationship
of cause and effect between the two.
