Judgment of the General Court (First Chamber, Extended Composition) of 28 May 2020

CK Telecoms UK Investments Ltd v European Commission

Competition — Concentrations — Wireless telecommunications — Retail market for mobile telecommunication services — Market for wholesale access and call origination on public mobile networks — Acquisition of Telefónica Europe by Hutchison — Decision declaring the concentration incompatible with the internal market — Oligopolistic market — Significant impediment to effective competition — Non-coordinated effects — Burden of proof — Standard of proof — Market shares — Effects of the merger on prices — Quantitative analysis of upward pricing pressure — Close competitors — Important competitive constraint — Important competitive force — Network-sharing agreements — Level of concentration — Herfindahl-Hirschmann Index — Error of law — Error of assessment

Case T-399/16



Top of the page Documents in the Case
Document Date Name of the parties Subject-matter Curia EUR-Lex
Judgment (OJ)
26/06/2020 CK Telecoms UK Investments v Commission
Judgment
ECLI:EU:T:2020:217
28/05/2020 CK Telecoms UK Investments v Commission
EUR-Lex text EUR-Lex bilingual text
Abstract
ECLI:EU:T:2020:217
28/05/2020 CK Telecoms UK Investments v Commission
Order
ECLI:EU:T:2017:220
16/03/2017 CK Telecoms UK Investments v Commission
Application (OJ)
23/09/2016 CK Telecoms UK Investments v Commission
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Top of the page Legal analysis of the decision or of the case

Reports of Cases

not yet published (Court Reports - general)

Subject-matter

Information not available

Systematic classification scheme

1.
3 Legal proceedings
  3.02 Actions for annulment
    3.02.04 Pleas in law
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.04 Examination by the Commission
        4.08.05.04.03 Commission discretion
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
3 Legal proceedings
  3.02 Actions for annulment
    3.02.00 General
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.04 Examination by the Commission
        4.08.05.04.00 General
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.01 Relevant market
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria
4 Internal policy of the European Union
  4.08 Competition
    4.08.05 Concentrations
      4.08.05.03 Assessment of compatibility with the internal market
        4.08.05.03.02 Assessment criteria


Citations of case-law or legislation

References in grounds of judgment

Operative part

Opinion

Information not available


Dates

Date of the lodging of the application initiating proceedings

  • 25/07/2016

Date of the Opinion

Information not available

Date of the hearing

Information not available

Date of delivery

28/05/2020


References

Publication in the Official Journal

Information not available

Name of the parties

CK Telecoms UK Investments v Commission

Notes on Academic Writings

  1. Furse, Mark: Locking down the meaning of SIEC in the EUMR - CK Telecoms: CK Telecoms UK Investments Ltd v European Commission (T-399/16) EU:T:2020:217, European Competition Law Review 2020, n° 9, p. p. 427-433 (EN)
  2. Nuys, Marcel ; Penz-Evren, Juliana: Vier zu Drei Fusionen, a new hope! : zugleich Anmerkung zu EuG in Sachen CK Telecoms UK (T-399/16), Neue Zeitschrift für Kartellrecht 2020 p. 432-435 (DE)
  3. Idot, Laurence: Concurrence - Concentration sur un marché oligopolistique, Europe 2020, n° 7 Juillet, Comm. 225 (FR)
  4. Béquet, Gaëlle D.G.M.G.: CK Telecoms UK/Commissie : Case T‑399/16 : noot, Mediaforum: Tijdschrift voor Media- en Communicatierecht 2020 nº 5 p. 190-192 (NL)
  5. Ginneken, Pepijn P.J. van ; Béquet, Gaëlle D.G.M.G.: Het CK Telecoms-arrest : vier is (g)een magisch getal : uitspraak van het Gerecht van 28 mei 2020, zaak T-399/16, ECLI:EU:T:2020:217 (CK Telecoms UK/Commissie), Markt & Mededinging 2020 p. 258-262 (NL)
  6. Monti, Giorgio: EU merger control after CK Telecoms UK Investments v. Commission : [Case T-399/16], World Competition 2020 nº 4 p. 447-472 (EN)
  7. Caspary, Tobias ; Bozhikov, Valeri: CK Telecoms UK Investments v Commission : the judgment that defines a significant impediment to effective competition in oligopolistic merger cases : case T-399/16, Journal of European Competition Law & Practice 2020 Vol. 11 nº 7 p. 363-366 (EN)
  8. Fountoukakos, Kyriakos ; Puech-Baron, Camille: Towards a higher standard of proof and a more interventionist judicial review in antitrust cases involving complex (economic) assessments following CK Telecoms? : case T-399/16, CK Telecoms UK Investments Ltd v Commission, Journal of European Competition Law & Practice 2020 Vol. 11 nº 8 p. 460-467 (EN)
  9. Déchamps, Pascale ; Valois Turk, Maurice de: Mixed signals? : where does the Hutchison judgment leave economic analysis of non-coordinated effects? : T-399/16 Hutchison versus Commission, Journal of European Competition Law & Practice 2020 Vol. 11 nº 9 p. 531-536 (EN)
  10. Buhart, Jacques ; Henry, David: CK Telecoms v Commission: a heightened and universal standard of proof under the EUMR ?, European Competition Law Review 2020, n° 12, p. 587-595 (EN)
  11. Braeken, Bas J.H. ; Versteeg, X.Y.G. (Jade): CK Telecoms/Commissie: ‘bridging the gap’ tussen Airtours en SIEC-test? : Gerecht 28 mei 2020, zaak T-399/16, (CK Telecoms UK Investments/Commissie), Nederlands tijdschrift voor Europees recht 2021 p. 7-12 (NL)
  12. Kraihammer, Marie Theres ; Zhang, Anthony: Economic analysis in the Three-O2 merger decision : CK Telecoms UK Investments Ltd v European Commission (T-399/16), European Competition Law Review 2021, n° 2, p. 106-110 (EN)
  13. Schmidt-Kessen, Maria José: CK Telecoms v Commission (Three/O2) - a new chapter on the standard of proof for unilateral effects in horizontal mergers : CK Telecoms UK Investments Ltd v European Commission (T-399/16) : case comment, European Competition Law Review 2021, n° 3, p. 168-170 (EN)
  14. Ibáñez Colomo, Pablo: EU merger control between law and discretion : when is an impediment to effective competition significant? : T-399/16, World Competition 2021 nº 4 p. 347-372 (EN)
  15. Witt, Lola: Die Beweisanforderungen an die Kommission in der Europäischen Fusionskontrolle Entscheidung des EuG in der Rechtssache CK Telecoms UK Investments/Kommission : Urteil vom 28.5.2020 : T-399/16, Zeitschrift für europäisches Privatrecht 2022 p. 337-365 (DE)
  16. Deutscher, Elias: Prometheus bound? : the uncertain future of the unilateral effects analysis in EU merger control after CK Telecoms : (Case T-399/16), Journal of Competition Law and Economics 2022 Vol. 2 p. 323-399 (EN)



Procedural Analysis Information

Source of the question referred for a preliminary ruling

Information not available

Subject-matter

  • Competition
  • - Concentrations between undertakings

Provisions of national law referred to

Information not available

Provisions of international law referred to

Information not available

Procedure and result

  • Actions for annulment : application granted

Formation of the Court

première chambre élargie (Tribunal)

Judge-Rapporteur

Öberg

Advocate General

Information not available

Language(s) of the Case

  • English

Language(s) of the Opinion

    Information not available