38 Venues Receive an advisory notice on Competition Rules

Deputy Director of the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority, Tine Rønde, stated:                                     

38 municipal venues have been reminded of the prohibition against agreements that restrict competition. This action follows inspections and information gathering at several of the venues by the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority.

The Danish Competition and Consumer Authority has conducted preliminary investigations of the collected documents. The evidence suggests that the venues may have coordinated purchase and sale prices as well as other contractual terms and divided markets among themselves. It also indicates that the venues may have shared competition-sensitive information about competitive parameters with each other, particularly within the framework of purchasing cooperations or trade associations.

Based on this, the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority has decided to issue an advisory notice to the venues. The advisory notice includes guidance on the competition rules and emphasizes that the venues must ensure their actions comply with these rules.

With this advisory notice, the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority has also decided not to pursue the case further. No decision has been made regarding the legality of the venues' conduct. The Danish Competition and Consumer Authority assesses that it would require significant additional resources to sufficiently pursue the case, and that competition in the market can be strengthened by merely issuing an advisory notice. However, the decision to close the case does not prevent the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority from reopening it at a later date if new information emerges.