The book "Concurrence, santé publique, innovation et médicament" (Competition, public health, innovation, and medicine), published by French publisher L.G.D.J., provides an analysis of the pharmaceutical sector’s oscillation between competition and regulation. The first part of the study is consecrated to "Médicament dans la regulation des dépenses de santé" (The role of medicine in the regulation of healthcare costs), which exposes health-related questions in their most government-controlled aspect. The second part conceives health through its social function, with "Innovation et incitation à la recherche" (Innovation and incentive to perform research), while the last part explains "Les difficultés des prises en compte par le droit de la concurrence des spécificités du secteur pharmaceutique" (Competition Law’s difficult apprehension of the pharmaceutical sector’s specificities). The three parts of this study offer an exhaustive presentation of the stakes involved in healthcare law, economy, and policy, and clearly shows that the hybrid nature of this sector makes it more a matter for regulation rather than for competition law.
Two and a half years after having been established by the LME, the French Competition Authority has uncontestably acquired its “place in the sun” amongst the competition authorities of other countries, as demonstrated by multiple indicators.
ITALIAN
Articolo: L’Autorità garante della concorrenza tra “regolazione” e politica in materia di concorrenza
Due anni e mezzo dopo l’instaurazione da parte del LME, l’Autorità francese garante della libera concorrenza ha trovato il suo posto tra le diverse autorità degli altri paesi, così come è stato dimostrato da diversi indicatori.
SPANISH
Artículo: La Autoridad de la competencia, entre “regulación” y política competitiva.
Después de dos años y medio de haber sido establecido por el LME, la Autoridad francesa de la competencia ha incontestablemente adquirido su “lugar bajo el sol” entre las autoridades de la competencia de otros países, como demostrado por varios indicadores.
In the Unites States, the Federal Act, the Interstate Wire Act, is now performed by the Department of Justice as that only prohibiting sports betting and not poker online. In addition, States have to make arrangements if they want to liberalize the game of poker online. In February 2012, there is that many States have explicitly maintained the ban, only having liberalized and permits issued for Nevada.
In The Journal of Regulation the summaries’ translation are done by the Editors and not by the authors
ENGLISH
At first sight, the notion of the neutrality of the State seems to be obvious and simple, almost a pleonasm. Being above isolated individuals, the State is responsible for the general interest, even envisioned on a long-term basis. However when one gets deeper into the analysis, this first observation, evident at first sight, must be mitigated and qualified.
FRENCH
A première vue,la notionde la neutralité del’Etatsemble êtreévidente et simple,presque un pléonasme. Etant au-dessusd’ individus isolés, l’Étatest responsable del’intérêt général, mêmeenvisagésur le long terme.Toutefois, A aller plus loin dans l’analyse,cette première observation,évidenteà première vue,doiventêtre atténués etexpliquée.
SPANISH
A primera vista, la noción de la neutralidad estatal parece ser obvio y simple, casi un pleonasmo. Estando por encima de los individuos aislados, el Estado es responsable por el interés general, aun cuando considerado a largo plazo. Pero cuando uno se sumerge en el análisis, esta primera observación, evidente a primera vista, puede ser mitigado y calificado.
ITALIAN
A prima vista, la nozione di neutralità dello Stato sembra un concetto ovvio e semplice, quasi un pleonasmo. Lo Stato, al di sopra degli individui singolarmente considerati, è responsabile dell’interesse generale, persino a lungo termine. Tuttavia, quando si analizza in modo più approfondito tale concetto, questa prima osservazione, evidente a prima vista, deve essere relativizzata e specificata.
As part of a procedure initiated for anti-competitive behaviors, the European Commission has three times requested, between the 13th of March and the 11th of November 2019, from Facebook the communication of information, reitarated in a decision in May 2020.
Facebook contests it alleging that the requested documents would contain sensitive personal information that a transmission to the Commission would make accessible to a too broad number of observers, while "the documents requested under the contested decision were identified on the basis of wideranging search terms, (...) there is strong likelihood that many of those documents will not be necessary for the purposes of the Commission’s investigation".
The contestation therefore evokes the violation of the principles of necessity and proportionality but also of due process because these probatory elements are collected without any protection and used afterwards. Moreover, Facebook invokes what would be the violation of a right to the respect of personal data of its employees whose the emails are transferred.
The court reminds that the office of the judge is here constraint by the condition of emergency to adopt a temporary measure, acceptable by the way only if there is an imminent and irreversible damage. It underlines that public authorities benefit of a presumption of legality when they act and can obtain and use personal data since this is necessary to their function of public interest. Many allegations of Facebook are rejected as being hypothetical.
But the Court analyzes the integrality of the evoked principles with regards with the very concrete case. But, crossing these principles and rights in question, the Court estimates that the European Commission did not respect the principle of necessity and proportionality concerning employees' very sensitive data, these demands broadening the circle of information without necessity and in a disproportionate way, since the information is very sensitive (like employees' health, political opinions of third parties, etc.).
It is therefore appropriate to distinguish among the mass of required documents, for which the same guarantee must be given in a technique of communication than in a technic of inspection, those which are transferable without additional precaution and those which must be subject to an "alternative procedure" because of their nature of very sensitive personal data.
This "alternative procedure" will take the shape of an examination of documents considered by Facebook as very sensitive and that it will communicate on a separate electronic support, by European Commission's agents, that we cannot a priori suspect to hijack law. This examination will take place in a "virtual data room" with Facebook's attorneys. In case of disagreement between Facebook and the investigators, the dispute could be solved by the director of information, communication and medias of the Directorate-General for Competition of the European Commission.
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We can draw three lessons from this ordinance:
This decision shows that Procedural Law and Compliance Law are not opposed. Some often say that Compliance guarantees the efficacy and that Procedure guarantees fundamental rights, the protection of the one must result in the diminution of the guarantee of the other. It is false. As this decision shows it, through the key notion of sensitive personal data protection (heart of Compliance Law) and the care for procedure (equivalence between communication and inspection procedures; contradictory organization of the examination of sensitive personal data), we see once again that two branches of Law express the same care, have the same objective: protecting people.
The judge is able to immediately find an operational solution, proposing "an alternative procedure" axed around the principle of contradictory and conciliating Commision's and Facebook's interests has shown that it was able to bring alternative solutions to the one it suspends the execution, appropriate solution to the situation and which equilibrate the interest of both parties.
The best Ex Ante is the one which anticipate the Ex Post by the pre-constitution of evidence. Thus the firm must be able to prove later the concern that it had for human rights, here of employees, to not being exposed to sanctioning pubic authorities. This Ex Ante probatory culture is required not only from firms but also from public authorities which also have to give justification of their action.
In The Journal of Regulation the summaries’ translation are done by the Editors and not by the authors
ENGLISH
The current worldwide economic downturn has strongly impacted nearly every countries all over the world. Thus, in order to avoid any further global financial crisis, governments have to restructure their financial supervisory mechanisms. While many states in the western world started to reform their supervisory frameworks, a small post-communist country developed a very interesting and uncommon model. Indeed, Georgia decided to simplify its financial supervisory architecture by transfering all regulatory and supervisory powers to its central bank.
FRENCH
L’actuelralentissement économique mondialafortement impactépresque tous lespaysdu monde entier.Ainsi, afin d’éviter toute autrecrise financière mondiale, les gouvernements ontà restructurer leursmécanismes de supervisionfinancière.Alors quede nombreux Etatsdans le monde occidental ont commencé àréformer leurssystèmes de surveillance, un petitpays post-communistea développé un modèletrès intéressant etrare.En effet, la Géorgiea décidé de simplifierson architecturede supervision financièreen transféranttous lespouvoirs de réglementationet de surveillance desa banque centrale.
SPANISH
El sector financiero georgiano emergió de la crisis global financiera y el declive económico doméstico en una condición sustancialmente positiva, y por lo tanto, en el contexto económico actual, merece atraer un interés mundial.
ITALIAN
L’attuale rallentamento dell’economia mondiale ha avuto un impatto su quasi tutti gli stati del mondo. Così, per evitare una nuova crisi finanziaria globale, i governi devono modificare i propri meccanismi di supervisione finanziaria. Mentre molti stati occidentali hanno iniziato le riforme delle loro strutture di supervisione, un piccolo paese ex-comunista ha sviluppato un modello interessante e poco diffuso. In effetti, la Georgia ha deciso di semplificare la sua struttura di supervisione finanziaria trasferendo tutti i poteri di regolazione e supervisione finanziaria alla sua banca centrale.
The translated summaries are done by the Editors and not by the Authors.
ENGLISH
The European Commission’s initiatives towards a Single Market in energy, transport and electronic communications should aim to further regulatory transparency and not market homogenisation. The article provides a quantitative and qualitative assessment of indiscriminating homogenisation of the mobile telecommunications market. The potential impacts on market power and the loss of consumer welfare are by no means negligible and imply important policy considerations
FRENCH
Les initiatives de laCommission européenneen vue d’unmarché unique des communicationsde l’énergie,de transportet électroniquesdevraient viser àune plus grande transparenceréglementaireet non pas à l’homogénéisationdu marché.Le présent articlefournit une évaluation quantitativeet qualitative de l’homogénéisationinconsidérée du marché des télécommunicationsmobiles.Lesimpacts potentiels surle pouvoir de marchéet la perte debien-êtredes consommateursne sont nullementnégligeableset impliquentdes considérationspolitiques importantes.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announces on May 6, 2010 that it will reclassify broadband Internet service as a Telecommunications Service, in order to overcome the ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on April 6, 2010, which found that the FCC’s approach to network neutrality lacked sufficient legal basis.
