OREANDA-NEWS. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) and Non-Profit Partnership for Competition Support had a joint meeting.

The Head of FAS Igor Artemiev; the Head of FAS Legal Department, Sergey Puzyrevsky; Deputy Head of FAS Legal Department, Denis Gavrilov; Deputy Head of FAS Legal Department, Denis Gavrilov; the Head of FAS; the Head of FAS Department for Control over Foreign Investments, Armen Khanyan; and the President of Russian Corporate Counsel Association (RCCA) Alexandra Nesterenko took part in the meeting.

The main themes for discussion were:

Draft Law “On Introducing Changes to the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition” and Some Other Legislative Acts”

Criteria for determining fair prices on monopolistic markets and markets with underdeveloped pricing competition

Draft Federal Law on expanding the institution of protection from unfair competition

Amendments to No 57 FZ.

Sergey Puzyrevsky reported that Draft Federal Law “On Introducing Changes to the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition” and Some Other Legislative Acts” passed regulatory control evaluation and submitted for discussion to the Government of the Russian Federation. He also honoured and thanked Partnership members, the interested federal executive bodies and NGOs for their work on the draft Law.

“We took into account many useful proposals. Some of them were also factored in the draft Federal Law”, pointed out the Head of FAS Legal Department, Sergey Puzyrevsky.

The Head of FAS Department for Control over Industry and Defence Complex, Maxim Ovchinnikov, presented a FAS project for determining criteria of fair prices on the markets with underdeveloped competitive environment. The project summarizes the existing practice of the Antimonopoly Service on exposing monopolistically high prices and unreasonably fixing different prices for the same goods. The criteria describe some pricing mechanisms that shall not be recognized violations on the market of particular characteristics. The devised criteria are aimed at increasing transparency of analysis undertaken by the antimonopoly bodies and ensure uniformity of enforcement in this field.

“Adhering to them an economic entity is in the so-called “safe harbor” - it can count on immunity from claims by the antimonopoly body. It is of importance that if an economic entity fixes prices for goods under other principles, not specified in the criteria; under no circumstances it means that its actions shall automatically be recognized as a violation. It means only that the antimonopoly body shall additionally investigate such practices”, commented the Head of FAS Department for Control over Industry and Defence Complex, Maxim Ovchinnikov.

The Head of FAS Department for Control over Advertising and Unfair Competition, Nikolai Kartashov, and Deputy Head of FAS Legal Department, Denis Gavrilov, presented a concept of the Chapter on unfair competition of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”.

“In the concept we accounted for foreign practice, particularly, Germany and the countries of the Customs Union, as well as practical FAS experience. The most important aspect is detailed prohibitions in the law on competition protection of various unfair practices of economic entities in the field of intellectual rights, since the most cases on unfair competition are traditionally are considered in this field”, pointed out Deputy Head of FAS Legal Department, Denis Gavrilov.

“We formгlated certain provisions of the Chapter, on the basis of the exposed trends in administrative and judicial practice of the Antimonopoly Service in order to eliminate the exposed enforcement problems and difficulties of qualification”, emphasized the Head of FAS Department for Control over Advertising and Unfair Competition, Nikolai Kartashov.

At the end of the meeting, the Head of FAS Department for Control over Foreign Investments, Armen Khanyan, discussed amendments to the Federal Law “On the Procedures of Foreign Investors to the Business Entities of Strategic Importance for the National Defence and State Security”.

“On 14 May 2013, some amendem4nts already adopted by the State Duma in the first reading. The amendments are aimed at reasonable simplification of the norms of the Law and extend its actions to particular transactions”, commented the Head of FAS Department for Control over Foreign Investments, Armen Khanyan.