Competition Authority imposed 2.3 billion lira in fines this year

Competition Authority President Birol Küle made an assessment regarding the investigations conducted by the authority in 2023 and its targets for 2024.

Pointing to the changes in business practices resulting from recent developments in the digital market and artificial intelligence, Küle said that in this process, anti-competitive behaviors have increased and changed shape, just as the benefits generated from products and services have.

Noting that the Authority prioritizes two issues, Küle stated: "First, we invested in information technologies and our human resources, and increased our capacity to examine digital data. Thus, we achieved a significant increase in the number of our investigations and on-site inspections. Second, we did not just wait for complaints for our examinations; we observed which sectors had disruptions and intervened ex officio."

628 MILLION LIRA FINE TO 4 WHITE GOODS FIRMS

Stating that they have determined that many suppliers were fixing resale prices to prevent price rigidity in sectors that affect the expenditures of low- and middle-income citizens, Küle said, "Price competition is the most fundamental element among the competition parameters in these sectors that directly meet consumer needs. We have paved the way for free pricing in this area."

While reminding that they have conducted investigations into suppliers' regional or customer restrictions or restrictions on online sales, particularly in markets such as consumer electronics, white goods, food, and cosmetics, Küle reported that they imposed a 628 million lira fine on 4 firms in the white goods sector within this scope.

Pointing out that compliance with the Authority's sanction decisions is of critical importance for the establishment of a competitive environment and for deterrence, Küle said that the fine imposed on EssilorLuxottica, which operates in optical lens and machinery production, is important in this respect.

Reminding that conditional permission was granted in 2018 for the merger application of Essilor, known for sunglasses production, and Luxottica, Küle continued his words as follows:

"This year, we determined that the undertaking did not comply with the conditions of that decision, and that it caused opticians to work only with them by selling optical lenses and machines as a package. We imposed a 492 million lira fine on the undertaking for this violation. We have also put on our radar the restriction of employees' wages and fringe benefits by companies through gentlemen's agreements or non-poaching agreements. In an investigation where we examined 48 undertakings ex officio in 2023, we imposed a 252 million lira fine for 27 undertakings. Our 3 investigations covering 35 undertakings in this area are ongoing."

Explaining that they launch official investigations against the problems they identify by initiating sector inquiries in markets where they receive signals of disruption, Küle stated that in this context, they published sector reports on online advertisements and fast-moving consumer goods, took action against the market disruptions identified as a result of these reports, and also initiated sector inquiries to identify competition problems that may arise in the markets in the earthquake zone.

Küle stated that in addition to the investigation they are conducting in the field of e-commerce, they have taken decisions regarding the sale of bus tickets on different platforms and the ability to move real estate and automobile advertisements to the desired platform.

45 INVESTIGATIONS ARE ONGOING

Providing information about the investigations they conducted this year, Küle made the following assessment:

"We completed 58 investigations this year. In 46 of these, where violations were detected or where undertakings accepted the violations and reached a settlement, 2.3 billion lira in fines were imposed. However, in some markets, providing guidance on how to open the market to competition is becoming more important than merely imposing fines or stopping the violation. In this respect, the investigations were terminated by accepting that the commitments offered by the undertakings to address the competition concerns revealed in 6 investigations were sufficient. Digitürk's practices of offering sub-broadcasting rights to other broadcasting organizations in a discriminatory manner, Obilet's tying practices, and online advertising restrictions are examples of these files. Similarly, in investigations resulting in fines, our focus is not solely on the fine; we carry out detailed compliance processes for undertakings to return to market conditions that are not in violation. The measures envisaged in addition to the fine in the decision given regarding Sahibinden.com are a good example of this."

Expressing that they are currently continuing their work on 45 investigations, 35 of which were opened this year, Küle said, "Our ongoing examinations are mostly concentrated in the food, white goods, small home appliances, education, construction, energy, automotive, entertainment, information technologies, cosmetics, and chemical sectors. With the human resources we have developed, we are operating much more effective processes, and we are taking decisions much faster with our commitment and settlement mechanisms brought into our Law. For example, our investigations opened regarding the fixing of resale prices in sectors such as food, automotive, and cosmetics were terminated in a short time thanks to the operation of the settlement mechanism."