Before the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy “GWB Digitalization Act” Comment of the Global Antitrust Institute, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University

This comment is submitted by the Global Antitrust Institute (GAI) at Scalia Law School, George Mason University to the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (Bundesministeriums fur Wirtschaft und Energie, hereinafter “BMWi”) for consideration in relation to its proposed amendment to German competition law, the GWB Digitalization Act. The GAI Competition Advocacy Program provides recommendations to facilitate adoption of economically sound competition rules and policies. This comment identifies a number of elements contained in the proposed legislation that have the potential to introduce departures from sound economic analysis into German competition-law enforcement. These include novel provisions affecting the definition of “dominance” and “abuse of dominance,” as well as provisions promoting the use of so-called mandatory access remedies in cases involving digital platforms.