compliance

Subscribe to compliance via RSS

By  Susan Ning, Ji Kailun and Yin Ranran

On December 12th, 2011, the Ministry of Commerce ("MOFCOM") conditionally approved the acquisition of the hard disk drive ("HDD") business of the Korean Samsung Electronics ("Samsung") by the US Seagate Technology ("Seagate")1. This is the 4th conditional approval of this year and the 10th conditional approval by MOFCOM since China’s Anti-Monopoly Law ("AML") entered into effect in 2008.

According to MOFCOM’s announcement, this review process lasted for almost 7 months starting from May 19th when the notification was first submitted to MOFCOM. The review process entered into the Extended Phase II and was cleared on the next business day of the expiry date of this phase.2  
 Continue Reading With Conditions, MOFCOM Clears Seagate/Samsung Deal

By Susan Ning and Ding Liang

On November 14, the National Development and Reform Commission ("NDRC") announced its decision to fine two private pharmaceutical companies nearly RMB 7 million for violating the Anti-monopoly Law (AML) (please see our previous article entitled NDRC Fined Two Pharmaceutical Companies for Abusive Conducts).  The NDRC’s news release did not clearly indicate which article(s) of the AML the two companies have violated and the method the NDRC adopted to calculate the fine. 

On December 16, Mr. Zhou Zhigao, an official from the NDRC’s Price Supervision, Inspection and Anti-monopoly Bureau discussed the reasoning behind this case in a seminar.  According to Mr. Zhou, the two pharmaceutical companies were fined under Article 17(3) of the AML because they abused their dominance by refusing to deal with reserpine manufacturers.  He also discussed the method used in that case to calculate the fine.Continue Reading NDRC Official Speaks on the Pharmaceutical Case

By Susan Ning, Sun Yiming, Liu Jia and Yin Ranran

On December 13, it was reported that the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) asked China Telecom to submit more detailed "rectification proposal" in relation to its pledge for suspension of antitrust probe1.   Earlier on December 2, China Telecom and China Unicom announced that they have applied to the NDRC for suspension of its antitrust investigation into their internet access pricing practices, by promising to adjust the internet access prices and overhaul their broadband services (see our article entitled "China Telecom and China Unicom Seek to Settle Antitrust Probe").Continue Reading NDRC Demands More Concrete Pledges from China Telecom

By Susan Ning, Ding Liang, Liu Jia and Sun Yiming

On November 14, the National Development and Reform Commission ("NDRC") announced its decision to fine two private pharmaceutical companies nearly RMB 7 million for violating the Anti-monopoly Law ("AML")1. The penalty decision was released right after the NDRC publicly confirmed its investigation over China Telecom and China Union for alleged abuse of dominance in the broadband market. It seemed that the NDRC could not wait to show its determination to enforce the AML with another striking case.Continue Reading NDRC Fined Two Pharmaceutical Companies for Abusive Conducts

By Susan Ning, Sun Yiming, Liu Jia and Yin Ranran

On 2 December 2011, China Telecom and China Unicom announced that they have applied to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) for suspension of its antitrust investigation into their internet access pricing practices, by promising to adjust the internet access prices and overhaul their broadband services.

According to their announcements 1, China Telecom and China Unicom stated that they have proactively cooperated with the NDRC’s investigation and have engaged in "self-evaluation" of the challenged pricing practices.  Both companies acknowledged "room for improvement" for their interconnection services and pricing practices.Continue Reading China Telecom and China Unicom Seek to Settle Antitrust Probe

By Susan Ning, Sun Yiming and Liu Jia

On December 7, the Provisional Measures on Investigating and Penalizing Violation of Notification Obligations for Concentrations between Business Operators (Provisional Measures) were reviewed and discussed at the No. 57th Ministerial Affairs Meeting of the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) and were passed in principle.1  

It was discussed at the meeting that currently companies frequently ignore their merger control notification obligations under the Anti-Monopoly Law which has caused negative social impact.  Under such circumstances, the Provisional Measures are expected to strengthen MOFCOM’s enforcement in relation to investigation and punishment for those companies who fail to honor their notification obligations.Continue Reading MOFCOM Passed Provisional Rule on Failure to Notify on Concentration

By Susan Ning, Ji Kailun and Yin Ranran

Only 10 days after its conditional clearance of the Alpha V/Savio deal1, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) published, on 10 November 2011, the third conditional merger clearance of this year approving the proposed joint venture between General Electric (China) Ltd. (GE China) and China Shenhua Coal to Liquid and Chemical Co., Ltd. (CSCLC)2. 

This is the first conditional decision relating to a Chinese Stated-owned enterprise (SOE) and the number of MOFCOM’s conditional clearance decisions is lifted to nine in total.  According to MOFCOM’s announcement, the review process lasted for about 7 months starting from April 13 when the notification was first submitted to MOFCOM.

Continue Reading MOFCOM Imposed Conditions on SOEs – GE/Shenhua Deal

By Susan Ning, Sun Yiming and Liu Jia

On November 9, 2011, an earlier rumor indicating that China Telecom is under antitrust investigation for alleged abuse of dominance in the broadband market was confirmed by the National Development and Reform Commission ("NDRC"), the authority in charge of price-related breaches of the Anti-Monopoly Law ("AML").  This is by  far the first time for China’s antitrust enforcement authority to conduct an antitrust investigation on large state-owned companies.  It is speculated that billions of antitrust fines could possibly be levied if the violation is established.

This article is a follow-up of our previous article entitled "Chinese Antitrust Enforcement Agencies Ready to Show Teeth to Large State-owned Enterprises? ", which includes a comprehensive analysis of the claimed violation.Continue Reading Earlier Rumor Confirmed: China Telecom and China Unicom under Antitrust Investigation

by Susan Ning and Liwei Wang

On September 11, 2011, the name of the previous Guangdong Provincial Price Bureau was officially changed to the PriceSupervision and Inspection and Antitrust Bureau of Guangdong Province (广东省价格监督检查及反垄断局, Guangdong PAB).  In connection with the expanded scope of its administrative authority, the agency will recruit additional officials for the purpose of supporting its price inspection and antitrust functions.  In addition, the administrative hierarchy of the post-reform Guangdong PAB is elevated, indicating heightened administrative authority.Continue Reading Guangdong Provincial Price Bureau Renamed, Reflecting Strengthened Antitrust Enforcement Authority

On 31 October 2011, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) publicly announced the eighth conditional merger clearance since the enactment of the Anti-monopoly Law (AML) in 2008. According to its announcement, MOFCOM cleared the proposed acquisition by Alpha Private Equity Fund V (Alpha V) of Savio group (an Italia based textile machinery producer, Savio) with four conditions. This is also the second conditional merger clearance this year.
To read the full article, please click here.
…
Continue Reading MOFCOM’s 8th Conditional Clearance – Alpha V/Savio Deal