28 Amendments of Stéphanie YON-COURTIN related to 2021/2185(INI)
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas EU competition policy has an important role – especially at times of uncertainty and transformation – in ensuring effective competition to encourage innovation, set fair economic conditions and, provide greater choice for consumers and foster the resilience of the single market;
Amendment 42 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Notes that the Vertical Block Exemption Regulation1 and related Vertical Guidelines2 have been inadequately adapted for recent market developments, notably the growth of online sales and online platforms; highlights that there are outstanding concerasks the Commission to ens uregarding the automobile sector, where manufacturers are competing directly with the distribution network by modifying the contractual terms of the vertical distribution relationship, thereby placing them at a competitive disadvantage and driving small and medium-sized enterprises out of the market; that any future revision takes the abuse of selective distribution agreements, labelling and other measures to prevent the purchase, distribution and resale of goods across borders into account. _________________ 1 Commission Regulation (EU) No 330/2010 of 20 April 2010 on the application of Article 101(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to categories of vertical agreements and concerted practices (OJ L 102, 23.4.2010, p. 1). 2 OJ C 130, 19.5.2010, p. 1.
Amendment 47 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6 a. Notes the continued use of different national product codes and serial numbers for the same or virtually identical products in order to prevent cross-border comparisons of prices and purchase; believes that this has a direct negative effect on consumers and asks the Commission to assess this matter further;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas international exchange and cooperation is essential to achieve a global and competitive level playing field and tackle the challenges of the twin digital and green transition and the resilience of the single market in a coordinated manner;
Amendment 64 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. Stresses the need for competition policy to support SMEs in Europe and to prevent the consolidation of market dominance in the hands of a few large European and international companies; underlines that the single market depends not only on competition at the international level, but also inside the single market itself;
Amendment 72 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Highlights the importance of tackling distortive foreign subsidies that are distortingharming the level playing field in the EU’s internal market and ; in this regard welcomes the proposed regulation on foreign subsidies, which is relevant in cases where, for example, a subsidised company intends to participatwill help to promote a fair and competitive sin EU public procurement procedures.gle market;
Amendment 152 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9a. Highlights the importance of national competition authorities in preserving markets and ensuring a level playing field during the COVID-19 outbreak; emphasizes their increased role in platform economy matters and the high use of their enforcement capacities in many other regulatory areas and calls for adequate resources and qualified staff;
Amendment 154 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Welcomes the launch of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC) and the Joint Competition Council, which will seek to deepen economic and transatlantic relations based on common values; notes with appreciation that the transformation of the EU’s rules vis-à-vis digital platform companies is mirrored by comparable legislative initiatives and individual investigations in the US;
Amendment 165 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Stresses that Parliament’s negotiating mandate on the Digital Markets Act willhas been voted on in plenary and that Parliament is prepared to work towards the accelerated completion of negotiations and the entry into force of the new rules;
Amendment 172 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Calls on the Commission to ensure that the regulatory and enforcement tasks are delegated within its services swiftly and in a transparent manner in order to eliminate inefficiencies and administrative burdens; calls on the Commission, in this regard, to dedicate sufficient and proper resources to implementing the Digital Markets Act; calls on the Commission to clarify the internal enforcement of the Digital Markets Act before it enters into force;
Amendment 174 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Points out the need for the Commission to allocate adequate resources to be able to effectively enforce EU competition rules; notes the need to ensure specific expertise on digital issues and online platforms practices with behavioural economists, algorithms specialists, engineers and data scientists; underlines the need to ensure a swift cooperation with national competition authorities and build on their growing expertise;
Amendment 175 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Calls on the Commission to carry out the necessary arrangements in organizing the Digital Markets Act enforcement structure; calls on the Commission to ensure that complementary antitrust and DMA cases, whether at national or EU level, benefit from an unparalleled coordination and enforcement track, by accommodating the new instrument alongside the current competition framework;
Amendment 182 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Welcomes the recent judgment by the General Court of the EU3 , which confirms the Commission’s assessment as regards a dominant market position and is proof and an example of the effective application of traditional EU competition rules in the context of a digital economy; Notes however that the enforcement of the European Commission Decision in the Google Shopping case still raises some concerns and shall not serve as a precedent for the implementation of the self-preferencing interdiction in the DMA; Calls on the Commission to ensure that competition is truly restored; __________________ 3Judgment of the General Court of 10 November 2021, Google and Alphabet v Commission, T-612/17, ECLI:EU:T:2021:763.
Amendment 185 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Welcomes the recent judgment by the General Court of the EU3 , which confirms the Commission’s assessment as regards a dominant market position and is proof and an example of the effective application of traditional EU competition rules in the context of a digital economy; Notes the lengthy legal process for the Google Shopping case and calls for additional resources for the enforcement authorities; __________________ 3Judgment of the General Court of 10 November 2021, Google and Alphabet v Commission, T-612/17, ECLI:EU:T:2021:763.
Amendment 186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14a. Notes that in several specific markets for financial data (credit rating, financial indices, consolidated feeds…), there are multiple vendors and, although none of them has a dominant market share, competition remains very low; notes also that some financial market data vendors positioned as data aggregators could act as gatekeepers and as such could control access to data and restrict usage for customers; welcomes ESMA's guidelines on market data published in August 2021 and looks forward to the results of the peer review exercise scheduled for 2023; Calls on the Commission to assess those oligopolistic and gatekeepers situations and develop measures restoring competition, supporting price transparency and avoiding unfair and unreasonable commercial practices;
Amendment 193 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Supports the review of EU competition law instruments as outlined in the Commission communication of 18 November 2021; recalls, however, that this should not exclude the development of new tools where necessary and a better use of existing tools such as interim measures and appropriate behavioural remedies in order to achieve fair competition and achievement of our EU policy objectives enshrined in EU law;
Amendment 201 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16a. Welcomes the review of the Communication on State aid rules for Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI) to enable Member States and industry to jointly invest in breakthrough innovation; stresses the targeted changes to facilitate the participation of SMEs, align its objectives with current EU priorities such as the twin green and digital transition as well as resilience of the single market;
Amendment 203 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 b (new)
Paragraph 16 b (new)
16b. Underlines that IPCEIs can be powerful game-changers to achieve EU strategic priorities and respond to economic and social challenges; regrets that IPCEIs are not fully exploited and calls on the Commission and Member States to facilitate and finalize IPCEI in critical sectors such as hydrogen, cloud and health;
Amendment 212 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Takes note ofWelcomes the Commission’s initiative to revise thenew guidelines on State aid rules in the field of climate, environmental protection and energy (CEEAG) to align them with the European Green Deal and supports the adoption of new guidelines in that regard; Reiterates that the green transition and the fulfilment of the European Climate Law can only be achieved with public and private investments; in particular to develop the breakthrough innovative solutions and upscale relevant technologies to attain the objective of climate neutrality; supports the CEEAG provisions as regards electricity levies for electro-intensive users and reminds that those levies should be granted as State aid together with requirements to implement energy audit conclusion, reduce their electricity footprint or sufficiently invest the amount of the aid into projects reducing substantially GHG emissions of the installations;
Amendment 238 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Urges the Commission to accelerate its commitment to reviewing its notice on the definition of relevant market; calls on the Commission to take into account a longer-term vision encompassing the global dimension and potential future competition in its competitive assessments;
Amendment 240 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)
Paragraph 20 a (new)
20a. Calls on the Commission to revise mergers guidelines to take into account efficiency gains linked to mergers, including the challenge of EU industrial competitiveness; Welcomes the role of the Priorities and Strategic Coordination Unit at DG COMP in order to draw on the expertise of all the Commission’s DG during the investigation of cases by the DG Competition; believes that expertise of the Commission's industrial or sectoral strategy could be strengthened in support of the DG Competition's investigation teams to identify the feasibility and consequences of remedies with regard to the Commission's priorities;
Amendment 241 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)
Paragraph 20 a (new)
20a. Acknowledges the contribution of the EU Merger Control Regulation on the proper functioning of the internal market and calls on the Commission to continue promoting and enforcing its core principles;
Amendment 250 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Amendment 253 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 b (new)
Paragraph 21 b (new)
21b. Calls on the Commission to review its merger and acquisition guidelines when it comes to assessing personal data; calls on the Commission to fully consider personal data assets as all other traditional physical assets when it decides on digital mergers and acquisitions; Urges the European Commission to take a broader view when evaluating digital mergers and assess the damaging effects of data concentration;
Amendment 269 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 a (new)
Paragraph 24 a (new)
24a. Stresses that enforcement needs to stay independent and benefit from fit for purpose screening tools and the necessary qualified human resources, in order to efficiently handle the rising and more challenging types of cases; reiterates the paramount importance for the EU economy of safeguarding competition in view of online markets, COVID-related goods and services, respectively the Recovery and Resilience Facility procurement processes; recalls that this requires utmost ambition in fulfilling the standards of Directive (EU) 2019/1;
Amendment 272 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 a (new)
Paragraph 25 a (new)
25a. Calls on the Commission to thoroughly assess the implementation of the Copyright Directive and address outstanding issues on bargaining powers of digital platforms about the implementation of neighbouring rights;
Amendment 273 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 b (new)
Paragraph 25 b (new)
25b. Calls on the Commission to ensure that competition law will not contravene to collective negotiations of independent workers but also in critical sectors such as the media sector and food-processing sector; calls on the Commission to look into the bargaining power and anticompetitive behaviour of European retail alliances regarding their suppliers and digital platforms towards publishers;
Amendment 274 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 a (new)
Paragraph 26 a (new)
26a. Considers that Parliament should play an active role in the political debate on competition policy; notes that Parliament should be more involved in the activity of working parties and expert groups, such as the International Competition Network (ICN) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) as an observer to get a better knowledge of the matter and keep it updated on the developments in order to be more prepared for its role as co-legislator; stresses that the European Parliament should participate in EU Competition Weeks and other meetings where Member States' representatives are invited; Notes that the Competition Working Group is a useful vehicle to foster exchanges between the European Parliament and DG Competition;