At its meeting on 30 April, the Competition Council took an important step in the competition authorities' fight to uncover illegal price-fixing and other unlawful cooperation between companies. At the meeting, the Competition Council approved rules on the waiver or reduction of fines for undertakings when undertakings participating in an infringement provide the Competition Authority with information about the infringement and cooperate with the Authority in its investigation.
Secret, illegal collusion between companies is the most serious breach of competition law, as it invariably leads to higher prices than would otherwise be the case. Such collusion therefore harms both the interests of business and consumers. Business inputs become more expensive and, in the long term, this reduces the competitiveness of industries, leading to a decrease in job opportunities.
Based on research, it has been estimated that the average gain for companies participating in illegal price-fixing amounts to 10% of the sale price of goods and services. The damage to society in such cases, however, is much greater and may amount to 20% of the colluding companies' turnover. In other words, buyers, i.e. consumers, businesses and the public sector, pay much higher prices for goods and services when competitors collude on prices, consult on tender submissions or divide up markets, than where fair competition is allowed to prevail.
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