This article will be printed soon in a book ouvrage of collection "Droit et Economie" de LGDJ (Lextenso édition), CONCURRENCE, SANTE PUBLIQUE, INNOVATION ET MEDICAMENT
Asymmetry is a key concept of regulation. Indeed, a competitive market works well when operators are in symmetrical relationships, ie there is no structural obstacle which prevents an agent from increasing his power solely on his merits (" competition by merits "). If there is an asymmetry, for example because a sector is monopolistic and the legislator has just declared it open to competition, there is a temporary asymmetry between the installed companies, the incumbent operators and the willing companies to enter this new market, the "new entrants". Historical operators, such as in the telecommunications or energy sector, when they were opened to competition by European directives, transposed by national laws (in french Law in 1996 for telecommunications and gas, in 2000 for electricity), benefit (sometimes referred to as grandfather clause), in particular because they have all the clients or all the know-how or all the patents, and that, in fact, the competitors can not enter the market. It is then necessary to establish a regulator also a priori temporary itself to establish to forceps the competition, by an asymmetrical regulation.
Asymmetric regulation, particularly applied in Great Britain at the time of the liberalization of the aforementioned sectors, means that the regulator will systematically favor new entrants, for example by dispossessing the incumbents for their benefit to make them on the market. Today, in the telecommunications sector, competition, notably on mobiles, is established, but the regulator does not intend to leave its place to disappear and today supports "symmetric regulation" .... Instead, it acts as a specialized competition authority.
Asymmetry may not be temporary but definitive, when inequality between operators, regardless of merit, does not come from a context of liberalization but from a structural failure of the market. For example, there are transport networks, transport of passengers or goods, railways or airstrip for airplanes, data or voice communication networks, pipes where gas or electricity circulate, etc., which belong to a single operator because they constitute economically natural monopolies. Under these conditions, the competitors of the monopoly must nevertheless have fair and effective access to this service and a regulator must necessarily be established for the effectiveness of that right (see Access).
Moreover, the Nobel Prize of Joseph Stiglitz (2001) was justified by his work on the asymmetry of information on certain markets, in particular the financial markets on which companies offer securities. Through the theory of the agency, it appears that the ordinary partners or ordinary investors have less information than the managers, even though the latter have the function of making decisions that bring the most to the former. But information asymmetry offers managers an "information rent" that allows them to offer many benefits and transfer risks to others. Regulators, in particular banking and financial regulators, are needed to combat information asymmetry. Transparency is one of the procedural means to combat this asymmetry. The financial and banking crisis of 2008 showed the extent of this asymmetry and, in fact, the inability of regulators to remedy it, for example, the British government estimated in 2010 that it was the financial regulator itself that was responsible for the crisis for not having sufficiently watched over conflicts of interest. In general, the global financial crisis was often later characterized as a crisis of regulators and regulation.
Regulation Law, in order to recognize and draw the consequences from the specificities of some objects, has been build, at the start, around the notion of "technical sector" although their delimitation is partially related to a political choice. But, in facts, there are multiple points of contacts between sectors, actors moving from one to another as objects. The regulatory solution is so to climb over some technical borders through the methodology of interregulation which is by the way the only one to enable the regulation of some phenomena going beyond the notion of sector and related to Compliance Law.
This news takes the exemple of companies furnishing new payment services. In order to they can provide these services, these firms needs to access to banking accounts of concerned people and so to very sensitive personal data. Regulation of such a configuration needs a cooperation between the banking regulator and the personal data regulator. Legislation being not sufficient to organize in Ex Ante this interregulation, the European Data Protection Board has published some guidelines on 17th of July 2020 about the way it conceives the articulation between the PSD2 (European directive about payment services) and GDPR and has announced that it intended to expand the circle of its interlocutors to do this interregulation. Such an initiative from EDPB can be justified by the uncertainty about how interpreting both texts and articulating them.
The Biennial Conference of the European Consortium on Political Research Standing Group on Regulatory Governance is the leading interdisciplinary conference on regulation and regulatory governance held in Europe. For the third time, it attracted many papers from all over the globe and from disciplines including political science, law, accounting, business, sociology, economics, international relations, anthropology, public administration and other cognate disciplines.
FRENCH
Rapport bibliographique (Symposium): la troisième conférence biennale du Comité permanent sur la régulation du Consortium européen de la recherche en sciences sociales, University College de Dublin, 17-19 juin 2010.
La conférence biennale de l'European Consortium on Political Research's (ECPR) Standing Group on Regulation (le Comité Permanent sur la Régulation du Consortium européen de la recherche en sciences politiques) est la conférence interdisciplinaire la plus importante en Europe en matière de régulation. Pour une troisième fois, cette conférence a attiré beaucoup de contributions du monde entier, et issues de disciplines variées comme les sciences politiques, le droit, la comptabilité, la gestion, la sociologie, l’économie, les relations internationales, l’anthropologie, l’administration publique, et d’autres disciplines annexes.
GERMAN
Bibliographischer Bericht (Symposium): die dritte Zweijährige Konferenz der Beständige Gruppe über Regulierung der europäischen Konsortium um Forschung in der Politikwissenschaft, University College von Dublin, 17-19. Juni 2010.
die dritte Zweijährige Konferenz der European Consortium on Political Research's (ECPR) Standing Group on Regulation (die Beständige Gruppe über Regulierung der europäischen Konsortium um Forschung in der Politikwissenschaft) ist die wichtigste interdiziplinäre Konferenz Europas im Bereich Regulierung. Zum dritten Mal hat sie Beiträge aus dem ganzen Welt angezogen, die aus verschiedenen Fächer entstanden: Politikwissenschaft, Jura, Rechnungslegung, Betriebswirtschaft, Soziologie, Wirtschaft, Internationale Beziehungen, Anthropologie, Öffentliche Verwaltung, und andere Fächer.
ITALIAN
Relazione bibliografica (Convegno): Terzo convegno biennale del Gruppo permanente sulla regolazione dell’European Consortium of Political Research (ECPR). Università di Dublino, 17-19 giugno 2010.
La conferenza biennale del Gruppo permanente sulla regolazione dell’European Consortium of Political Research è uno dei più importanti convegni europei interdisciplinari sulla regolazione economica e sulla governance in materia di regolazione. Per la terza volta, raccoglie degli studi, scritti da autori di tutto il mondo, in diverse discipline tra cui scienze politiche, diritto, contabilità, business, sociologia, economia, relazioni internazionali, antropologia, diritto amministrativo e altre discipline cognitive.
SPANISH
Informe bibliográfico (Simposio): La tercera conferencia bienal del el Comité Permanente sobre la Regulación del Consorcio europeo de investigación en ciencias políticas. Universidad de Dublín, 17-19 de junio del 2010.
La conferencia bienal del Standing Group of Regulation (el Comité Permanente sobre la Regulación del Consorcio europeo de investigación en ciencias políticas) del European Consortium of Political Research (ECPR) es la conferencia interdisciplinaria más importante en Europa en materia de la regulación. Por una tercera vez, esta conferencia atrae muchas contribuciones del mundo entero y de disciplinas variadas incluyendo la ciencia política, el derecho, la contabilidad, los negocios, la sociología, la economía, las relaciones internacionales, la antropología, la administración pública y otras disciplinas cognadas.
两年一度的European Consortium on Political Research's (ECPR) Standing Group on Regulation（欧洲政治研究学会常务管理委员会）会议是欧洲监管领域中最重要的跨学科会议。此次第三次会议吸引了来自世界范围内多个学科的协助，其中包括法学，会计学，管理学，社会学，经济学，国际关系学，人类学，公共行政学以及其他从属学科。
PORTUGUESE
Informe bibliográfico (Simpósio): A terceira conferência bienal do Comitê permanente sobre a regulação do Consórcio Europeu de Pesquisas Políticas, University College de Dublin, 17-19 de junho de 2010.
A conferência bienal do European Consortium on Political Research's (ECPR) Standing Group on Regulation (Comitê permanente sobre a regulação do Consórcio Europeu de Pesquisas Políticas) é a conferência interdisciplinar mais importante na Europa em matéria de regulação. Pela terceira vez, esta conferência reuniu diversas contribuições vindas do mundo inteiro e ligadas a disciplinas variadas como ciências políticas, direito, contabilidade, gestão, sociologia, economia, relações internacionais, antropologia, administração pública e outras disciplinas conexas.
Provisions of the financial reform bill (Dodd Bill) currently being examined by the United States Congress would empower the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to implement limits on speculation on energy futures and derivatives, as well as to impose a much stricter declaratory and supervision regime for over-the-counter trades in futures and derivatives in general.
FRENCH
Fiche thématique (Energie, Finance) : Une disposition du projet de loi sur la réforme financière (Dodd Bill) qui est en train d’être examiné par le Congrès des Etats-Unis donnerait de façon explicite le pouvoir au {Commodities Futures Trading Commission} (CFTC — autorité de tutelle américaine des bourses de commerce) d’imposer des limites sur la spéculation sur les options énergétiques.
Des dispositions du projet de loi sur la réforme financière (Dodd Bill) qui est en train d’être examine par le Congrès américain donnerait au {Commodities Futures Trading Commission} le pouvoir d’imposer des limites sur la spéculation sur les options et dérivés énergétiques, ainsi que d’imposer un régime de déclaration et de surveillance beaucoup plus exigeant sur les échanges de gré-à-gré de tous les contrats d’options et dérivés.
GERMAN
Thematischer Bericht (Energie, Finanz): Der Gesetzvorschlag bezüglich auf die Finanzreform (Dodd Bill), der gerade vor dem Congress steht, enthält eine Verfügung, die die Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC - die amerikanische Aufischtsbehörde für Futures- und Optionsmärkte) mit der Fähigkeit bevollmächtigen würde, die Spekulation auf energetischen Futures zu beschränken.
Im Gesetzvorschlag über die Finanzreform (Dodd Bill), der gerade vom Congress steht, würde der Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC - die amerikanische Aufsichtsbehörde für Futures- und Optionsmärkte) dazu ermächtigen, die Spekulation auf energetischen Futures und Derivaten einzuschränken, sowie eine strengere Erklärung- und Aufsichtsregulierung für das Schaltergeschäft von Futures und Derivaten durchzuführen.
GREEK
Θεματική Έκθεση (Ενέργεια, Χρηματοδότηση): Διατάξεις του σχεδίου νόμου για την οικονομική μεταρρύθμιση (Dodd Bill), το οποίο εξετάζεται αυτή τη στιγμή από το Κογκρέσο των ΗΠΑ, θα ενίσχυαν την Επιτροπή Προθεσμιακών Συναλλαγών σε Εμπορεύματα (CFTC) ως προς την επιβολή ορίων στην κερδοσκοπία όσον αφορά στις θέσεις των προθεσμιακών προϊόντων ενέργειας
Διατάξεις του σχεδίου νόμου για την οικονομική μεταρρύθμιση (Dodd Bill), τοοποίο εξετάζεται αυτή τη στιγμή από το Κογκρέσο των ΗΠΑ θα ενδυνάμωναν την Επιτροπή Προθεσμιακών Συναλλαγών σε Εμπορεύματα ως προς την επιβολή ορίων όσον αφορά στην κερδοσκοπία για την προθεσμιακή αγορά προϊόντων ενέργειας στις θέσεις των προθεσμιακών πράξεων ενέργειας και παραγώγων. Επίσης, θα επέβαλλε ένα πολύ αυστηρότερο καθεστώς αναγνώρισης και εποπτείας για εξωχρηματιστηριακές συναλλαγές προθεσμιακών πράξεων και παραγώγων γενικότερα.
POLISH
Tematyczny Raport (Energia, Finanse): Projekt ustawy o reformie finansowej (Dodd Bill), obecnie badany przez amerykański Kongres, dałby wyraźną władzę Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC – amerykańska komisjanadzorcza giełd handlowych) do stosowania ograniczeń dotyczących spekulacji opcjami energetycznymi.
Projekt ustawy o reformie finansowej aktualnie badany przez amerykański Kongres dałby Commodities Futures Trading Commission wyraźną władzę nakazującą stosowanie ograniczeń dotyczących spekulacji opcjami i ubocznymi produktami energetycznymi,jak również dałby władzę narzucającą bardziej zaostrzony system deklarowania i nadzoru nad wolną wymianą opcji i produktów ubocznych.
SPANISH
Una disposición del proyecto de ley (Dodd Bill), actualmente siendo examinado por el Congreso de los Estados Unidos, empoderaría la Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC – la Comisión americana de tutelaje de las bolsas de comercio) de imponer límites futuros sobre especulación sobre los futuros de energía
Dispocisiones de la reforma financiera (Dodd Bill), que está siendo examinada por el Congreso americano, empoderaría la Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC – la Comisión americana de tutelaje de las bolsas de comercio) de imponer límites sobre la especulación de opciones y derivados de energía y de imponer un régimen declarativo y de supervisión mucho más estrictos para el comercio extrabursátil en futuros y derivados en general.
The theme of the relationship between regulation and innovation finds every day new illustrations. The example of the drone is particularly noteworthy.
Indeed, the drone is a technical object that moves in the air without being driven in an immediate way by the hand of man.
The legal mechanism of qualification brought the drone in the category of "aircraft" and submit it to the regulatory power of the civil aviation regulator.
The regulation of civil aviation is primarily a safety regulation, not a regulation of the sector's economic deployment.
This is why regulators have taken restrictive positions on drones used for commercial purposes, to the extent that the presence of human beings, most the pilots, are the condition for the safety of people. The fact that the drones fly with "no one" led to consider as a danger a prior, which led regulators to take restrictive measures on flying drones for commercial purposes, restricton consistent withthe regulator's intervention criteria, without taking into account external rules, such as the protection of privacy.
But whatever the sector, regulators see themselves increasingly as economic regulators. If we adopt this perspective, a restrictive approach appears to be nonsense.
In the interests of balance in both approaches, the safety of people and the economic development through innovation, the US civil aviation regulator, the Federal Aviation Administration is developing new rules.
February 11, 2015, Federal Aviation Administration raised the need for a legal framework for commercial drones. The reason for this is economic. As it writes: "It is anticipated that this activity will result in significant economic benefits". Indeed, Article 333 of the 2012 ACT of modernization and reform imposes registration procedure for every commercial unmanned flying object in the sky!footnote-28. But this hinders business development, and therefore the incentive to technical innovation drone.
It was necessary to find a balance between security of persons and lifting of barriers to economic development. This is why the FAA will distinguish between "small" and other drones. The former are particularly useful in agriculture. To the extent that the former do not constitute danger to persons, an exemption from this procedure (Article 333 exemption) may be given concerning them.
One can analyze this evolution of air Regulation in two ways. First, it is for air regulator to take into account fundamental innovation of flying machines with "no one": innovation will be the base of a huge market for which strict regulatory rules could have been the troublemaker. The consideration of the safety of people remains since only drones "small" are allowed. In addition, they will have to remain at low level and away from airports and housing.
Second, the Regulator reacts by pragmatism. The ban on commercial flight drones hasn't prevented investment in this area. So far, the regulator had instead chosen not to react to the open violations of the standards, from the moment that the safety of the people wasn't in danger. The idea of the new conception is to promote this new market by putting the rules protecting the physical safety of people.
Yaping Liu is an associated professor at Sun Yatsen University (China). She is currently the executive editor of Public Management Review (China), director of department of Public Administration in Sun Yatsen University. (...)
The European Directive of 6 July 1998 on the legal protection of biotechnology inventions excludes the human embryo of the mechanism of the patent. A patent is filed in Germany on purified brain stem cells. German Federal Patent Court cancels the patent, because it would be on the human being. The one who filed the patent appeals, arguing that a text that refuses the patentability of the embryo is not about stem cells. Asked for a preliminary ruling by the National Court, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) delivers, in a Grand Chamber a judgment on October, 18 2011, asking that the Directive by designating the human embryo has designated the mechanisms of cell division. This extensive conception leaves a possible place for the stem cells. They can therefore be also excluded from patentability.
Full title : Avis n°15-A-01 du 6 janvier 2015 relatif à des projets de décrets pris pour l'application de la loi portant réforme ferroviaire (Opinion No. 15-A-01 of 6 January 2015 on draft orders made for the purposes of the law on rail reform)
