Well-attended conference on competition issues – „The Future Ain't What it Used to Be‘

On 27 September, the Competition Authority held an international conference on competition issues at the Radisson Blu Hotel, in cooperation with the Minister of Industry and Trade and the Competition Appeals Board. The conference was entitled „The Future Ain't What it Used to Be – 20 Years of Competition Law and the Challenges Ahead‘. The conference was well attended, with nearly 400 participants. Photos of the conference are available. here.
At the conference, around 30 international and domestic individuals from politics, business, academia and the civil service discussed competition policy in a small economy and the challenges that lie ahead. In the morning, topics included how to improve market efficiency and the situation following the global financial crisis. Four afternoon workshops addressed competition in public services, the deterrent effect of fines in competition law infringements, the enforcement of competition law in the telecommunications market, and the economic recovery following the banking collapse.

The conference's keynote speaker was Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), who has led the organisation since 2006.

A new report by the Competition Authority on the competitive situation in Iceland was presented at the conference, entitled „Is the lost decade ahead?“ – “Fierce competition cures stagnation." Here you can find various materials related to the conference:

• Speech Ragnheiður Elín Árnadóttir, Minister of Industry and Trade.
• Speech Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
• Speech Pál Gunnars Pálsson, Director-General of the Competition Authority. See also slides.
• Report Competition Authority, „Is the lost decade ahead?“, see also News SE (The report in English).
• Slides John M. Connor, Professor Emeritus at Purdue University in the United States.
• Slides Christine Meyer, Director General of the Norwegian Competition Authority.
• Pictures from the conference on the SE Facebook page.

A presentation of the report 'Is the Lost Decade Ahead? – Strong Competition Cures Stagnation'.

In the run-up to the conference, the Competition Authority sought views on competition matters from selected individuals from business and politics. The videos „What do they say about competition issues?“.

The programme was as follows:

Morning session

• How can we pave the way to more efficient markets?
• Resurrection following the crisis. Where do we go from here?
• What can the government do to increase competition in the public sector?

A new report on the Resurrection of Icelandic companies and the state of play in terms of competition will be introduced during the morning session.

Afternoon session – Workshops in parallel sessions

Time	Event
12:30 – 14:00
Workshop 1:	Advocacy challenges – Competition policy as a tool to promote efficiency in the public sector.
	Panellists: – Vilhjálmur Egilsson, Rector at Bifröst University (moderator) – Illugi Gunnarsson, Minister of Education, Science and Culture – Kristina Geiger, Deputy Director of the Swedish Competition Authority – Cristiana Vitale, Senior Competition Policy Expert, OECD – Victor D. Norman, Professor of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics (NHH), and former minister of competition affairs – Björn Zoega, CEO of Landsspitali University Hospital – Oddur Steinarsson, CEO and Chief Physician, Nötkäran Kortedala, Primary Health Care Centre, Gothenburg, Sweden
Workshop 2:	Optimal deterrence effect of competition law enforcement.
	Panellists: – Helga Melkorka Ottarsdottir, Supreme Court Attorney (moderator) – John M. Connor, Professor Emeritus of Economics, Purdue University, US – Páll Hreinsson, Judge at the EFTA Court – Tim Ward, Barrister, Monckton Chambers, London. – Jóna Björk Helgadóttir, District Court Attorney at Landslög Law Offices – Ásgeir Einarsson, Deputy Director General of the Icelandic Competition Authority
2:30 pm – 4:00 pm
Workshop 3:	Enforcement challenges in network markets – The case of the telecommunications market.
	Panellists: – Kristín Haraldsdóttir, Chairman of the Board of the Competition Authority (moderator) – Tim Ward, QC Barrister. - Heiðrún Jónsdóttir, District Court Attorney at Aktis and member of the board of Skipti hf. (telecom company) – Joakim Reynisson, CTO of Nova hf. (telecommunications company) – Dóra Sif Tynes, Senior Legal Officer, EFTA Secretariat – Páll Gunnar Pálsson, Director General of the Competition Authority
Workshop 4:	Competition as a tool to deal with the aftermath of the financial crisis – The resurrection of the Icelandic economy, the competitive environment after the banking collapse in 2008 and the development of the banking market.
	Panellists: – Hreggviður Jónsson, Chairman of the Board of the Iceland Chamber of Commerce (moderator) – Miguel de la Mano, Head of Unit, Financial Markets, European Commission – Birna Einarsdóttir, CEO of Íslandsbanki – Johannes Karl Sveinsson, Chairman of the Competition Appeals Committee – Victor D. Norman, Professor of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics (NHH), and former minister of competition affairs – Benedikt Árnason, Chief Economist of the Icelandic Competition Authority
4:00 pm – 5:00 pm	Cocktail