So check who binds to a provider forever (to a provider)
An overview of the upcoming reform of the vertical GVO and the associated vertical guidelines
The cartel ban of Art. 101 TFEU also includes vertical agreements, i.e. agreements between companies that do not work in the same market level. With the vertical group exemption regulations (vertical GVO) and the associated vertical guidelines, the Commission takes out some groups of vertical agreements under certain conditions from the cartel ban. to give companies more legal certainty - a so -called Safe Harbor
Since the vertical GVO and the associated guidelines from 2010 apply only for a limited period, a reform is pending. The new vertical GVO ("vertical gap") and the new vertical guidelines ("vertical guideline-e") should apply from June 1st, 2022.
Since there have been some changes in the sales landscape since 2010, in particular with a view to online sales, the Commission checked the question of whether and in what form new regulations checked the question of the interested public. The new vertical GVO is the essence from the statements of the public consultation and its own commission-ZT supported by workshops and reports. It should continue to meet the need for legal certainty expressed by the application practice in the assessment of anti -anti -legal laws in the vertical relationship - the Safe Harbor .
The consultation procedure was transparently designed by the Commission. Significant changes to the previously available designs on the new vertical GVO and the vertical guidelines are therefore no longer to be expected at the present time.
essential innovations
in this series of contributions to an overview of the essential changes. As a focus, we present the (new) regulations on the following topics:
Dual sales - watch out for two -track driving
Platforms - the marketplace on the Internet
Price education - the price is hot
Selective or single sales systems- alone in the hallway, or not?
This premium series is intended to provide initial assistance in order to assess, to what extent current sales agreements have to be checked and whether they are effective according to the new rules. In addition, we provide information on how new scope can be exploited.
A first example of new scope
as an example of the opening of new possibilities can be a look at the binding duration for exclusivity and competition bans. Due to the new vertical GVO, the possibilities of binding a buyer “forever” change. In the new Art. 5 Para. 1 Lit. a) Vertical GVO-E, the fiction is that competition bans that are supposed to run for more than five years are considered to be bans on competition for an indefinite period-and were therefore not released. Likewise, tacit extensions of competition bans had been regarded as bans for an indefinite period and were therefore not exempt. According to the new vertical rules, competition bans can now be tacitly extended and nevertheless benefit from an exemption as long as the customer receives a reasonable notice period or an appropriate way to renegotiate the contract.
