Today, the President of the Bundeskartellamt, Andreas Mundt, presented the authority’s report on its activities in 2013 and 2014. At the same time the authority published the brochure "Annual Report 2014".

Andreas Mundt: "Over the past two years the Bundeskartellamt has concluded a large number of cartel proceedings and imposed the highest fines ever. We have also taken important decisions in the area of merger control and in individual cases have prohibited merger projects or only cleared them subject to strict conditions. We are aware that our actions are of great importance for companies and their employees. So we do not take these decisions lightly. However, it is important to prevent cartel agreements and the uncontrolled market power of individual companies because these are generally to the detriment of consumers. Protecting competition therefore actively protects the consumer."

Cartel prosecution

In the past two years, in 20 different cartel proceedings the Bundeskartellamt has imposed fines amounting to 1.36 billion euros on 137 companies and 133 individuals (2014: 1.12 billion euros and 2013: 244.5 million euros).

Andreas Mundt, President of the Bundeskartellamt: "2014 was an extraordinary year as we were able to conclude three very complex proceedings in the product categories beer, sausage and sugar. However, effective cartel prosecution is only possible if the fines imposed can be effectively enforced. It must be ensured that companies cannot apply clever restructuring measures to retroactively avoid liability for fines. Several current cases have shown that there are still loopholes in the law that must be closed urgently. We are in close contact with the federal government on this issue."

In the first half of 2015 the Bundeskartellamt imposed fines amounting to around 132 million euros inter alia against manufacturers of prefabricated garages and automotive suppliers. Furthermore, the Bundeskartellamt has recently concluded most of its cartel proceedings against manufacturers and retailers in the food sector for illegally maintaining the shop prices of well-known brand products in the following categories: confectionery, coffee, pet food, beer and body care products. The remaining proceedings against several companies or company groups in the product categories confectionery, coffee and beer will be concluded in the coming months.

Merger control

For several years the number of notified mergers has remained stable. 1,091 projects were examined in 2013, and in 2014 a total number of 1,188 projects. An in-depth or second-phase examination was carried out in 40 cases. Two projects were prohibited, three could only be cleared subject to conditions.
In 2015, one merger project has already been prohibited, i.e. the planned takeover of Kaiser's Tengelmann by EDEKA. For its assessment of the planned concentration the Bundeskartellamt could make use of the results of its sector inquiry "Buyer power in the food retail sector" which was concluded in 2014.

Andreas Mundt: "In the past years the Bundeskartellamt has continued to expand its economic expertise in order to be able to adequately come to terms with the economic realities of life in a rapidly changing business world. Also in the EDEKA/Kaiser's Tengelmann case we carried out several data-intensive investigations. At several locations the merger would have significantly impeded competition. As the companies involved were not prepared to respond to our competition concerns we had to prohibit the project."

After the merger's prohibition by the Bundeskartellamt the companies applied for ministerial authorisation. In this procedure the Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy examines whether in a specific case the restraint of competition is outweighed by advantages to the economy as a whole or an overriding public interest.

Abuse control proceedings

In the last two years the Bundeskartellamt concluded 79 abuse control proceedings. Recently a number of abuse control proceedings were conducted against water suppliers, which led to a considerable reduction in the price of water. With its proceedings against Berliner Wasserbetriebe (BWB), its order to cut water prices which has meanwhile become final and the conclusion of a settlement agreement in May 2014, the Bundeskartellamt ensured that water customers in Berlin will be spared a total of around 440 million euros from 2012 to 2018.

Digital economy

Digital markets have played an increasing role in the Bundeskartellamt's daily case work. The framework conditions of hotel booking portals and conditions for the online sale of goods of brand manufacturers have, among others, played a significant role in the last two years.

Andreas Mundt: "Recently the internet has increasingly become the focus of discussions on competition law. The Bundeskartellamt has already concluded several cases involving online platforms which have also raised new competition issues. We intend to further develop our competencies in this area. The Bundeskartellamt has therefore launched a task force which will examine the competitive conditions on online platforms."

The Activity Report 2013/2014 and the Annual Report 2014 are available for download at the Bundeskartellamt's website (German versions).