Category: Investigations

Latest in the CMA road fuel market study

The CMA recently published an update in respect of its road fuel market study where it had been looking into the prices and competition in this particular sector.

The study was launched last year and came at an important time when the cost-of-living crisis was really hitting us all and continues to cause significant problems for families across the UK. It is essential to make sure that no companies are breaching competition law and that consumers are not being taken advantage of, particularly when we are all feeling the squeeze.

CMA suspects anti-competitive behaviour regarding production and broadcasting of sports content

First published by Author on June 07, 2023 in the following categories: Consumer Law Digital Industry Investigations Sports and tagged with cma | competition law | consumer law | investigations | sports

Since July 2022, the CMA has been looking into suspected anti-competitive behaviour in relation to the production and broadcasting of sports content in the UK for both freelance and employed labour.

The early CMA suspicions involve potential suspected breaches of competition law which the UK’s competition regulator has been looking into over the last 12 months or so. The CMA has yet to make any final determinations, but it appears to have made considerable headway in relation to the ongoing investigation.

As things stand, further information is still being gathered by the watchdog to determine whether any infringements have taken place.

Fragrances and fragrance ingredients – suspected anti-competitive conduct

First published by Author on May 03, 2023 in the following categories: Consumer Law Industry Investigations Latest and tagged with cma | competition law | consumer law | investigations

The CMA has confirmed that it has launched an investigation into suspected anti-competitive conduct relating to the fragrances and fragrance ingredients sector.

The CMA launched its investigation in March 2022, so we are only at the very beginning of the UK competition regulator and watchdog looking into what may or may not have happened. The CMA has confirmed that it has reason to believe that such behaviour may be taking place, and they are also liaising with international partners in respect of the investigation.

If any breaches of the Competition Act are established, this would constitute a serious matter that will need to be dealt with, and the CMA may wish to issue fines and prosecutions.

Unit pricing in the groceries sector: CMA project

The CMA has launched a project to look at the unit pricing in the grocery sector which, I think we can all agree, is a particularly important matter given the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

The CMA has published its announcement in respect of the project recently, so we are very much in the early stages of this particular one. The matter also follows a previous Super Complaint in respect of the complexities and issues that could have been impeding the ability of consumers to make informed choices in respect of price comparison.

Read on for a little bit of information about this latest CMA project. I think we can all agree it is one to watch given that we are all feeling the pinch at the moment.

Amazon marketplace investigation – CMA

First published by Author on March 01, 2023 in the following categories: Industry Investigations Latest Market Dominance Abuse and tagged with cma | competition law | investigations | market abuse

The CMA (Competition and Markets Authority) is conducting an Amazon marketplace investigation to make sure that no competition laws are being breached.

We take a brief look at the information the CMA has provided so far as a pivotally important investigation that the competition regulator is conducting.

Social media endorsements – CMA investigations

For several years, the CMA has been investigating social media endorsements to make sure that vital competition and consumer laws in the UK and not being broken.

Given the prevalence of social media, particularly in respect of it being used for marketing and advertising these days, it is vital that people know when they are seeing advertisements and products and services being pushed for recompense by influences. There have been many questions as to whether it has been clear enough that people know they are being advertised to as opposed to simply being recommended a product, which is the real focus of the CMA investigation.

Private healthcare market competition investigation

The private healthcare market investigation that has been ongoing for over a decade is a matter that has seen a recent update published by the UK’s CMA, the Competition and Markets Authority.

Private healthcare is a particularly sensitive industry in relation to competition law, and it is one that must be monitored carefully to make sure that patients – i.e. consumers – can make the best choices for them. In this latest update from the CMA, it has been suggested that there is still much more work that needs to be done.

Suspected unfair pricing investigations

It is important for the CMA to look into incidents of suspected unfair pricing to ensure that consumers are not being overcharged and taken advantage of.

This can particularly be the case in relation to medication costs of which the CMA has looked into a number of issues about the NHS being overcharged, and we will provide an update of an example in this article.

Broadly speaking, it is important that pricing is set at fair levels and that companies are not taking advantage of consumers to drive their profits up in an obscene manner. At the same time, competition must be required to allow pricing to be set competitively as well.

Competition law in sports: CVC Capital and Six Nations Rugby

First published by Author on September 04, 2022 in the following categories: Acquisitions Industry Investigations Mergers and tagged with cma | competition law | consumer law | investigations

In March 2021, it was announced that CVC Capital and Six Nations Rugby had come to deal on a 14.3% stake in the Six Nations, for which it reportedly paid a huge £365 million. However, in the wake of this proposed agreement, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) saw fit to begin an investigation into whether or not the merger would provoke a decrease in competition within the market.

When major deals occur in any sector, it is natural and routine for the CMA to look into any potential changes to competition which may be caused, so the fact that a CMA investigation was triggered does not necessarily confirm that a breach of competition law has occurred, or that any action will be taken against the organisation under investigation. Such was the case for the CVC Capital deal, which was cleared by the CMA in July.

Nevertheless, it is worth considering why the CMA made the decision to investigate and how it came to its decision, as cases like this can give a valuable insight into how the competition regulator operates in the UK. It is also useful to look at cases like this from the perspective of competition law in sport.

Fuel retail market review in the UK – CMA

First published by Author on August 03, 2022 in the following categories: Industry Investigations Latest Pricing and tagged with cma | competition law | fuel | investigations | pricing

investigation into retail banking competition

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has announced that it is conducting an urgent review into the UK fuel retail market at the request of the government.

The review comes at a time with soaring inflation, a cost-of-living crisis and the prices at petrol pumps spiralling out of control. We are all being hit by the increased cost of living, and the government must do all it can to ensure that the people do not suffer and face further hardship.

We welcome the review that is being conducted by the CMA, and we urge the government to step up in supporting people and preventing prices from soaring even further out of control.