Brazilian court clears GSK/Pfizer divestiture

Partner Eduardo Frade talked to Global Competition Review (GCR) about the approval, by a Brazilian federal judge, of Pfizer’s sale of assets to Aspen Pharmacare, ending a suspension caused by lack of quorum at the country’s competition watchdog. 

Back in June, CADE unconditionally cleared Aspen’s proposed acquisition of Pfizer’s bisurated magnesium assets. However, last month CADE announced that it was suspending all procedural deadlines after commissioner Paulo Burnier da Silveira’s term ended, leaving the authority with only three commissioners.

Aspen and Pfizer challenged the suspension before a federal court in Brasilia. Judge Edna Márcia Silva Medeiros Ramos of 13th Federal Court of the Federal District found that it was unreasonable to halt the tie-up because of the competition authority’s quorum issues, adding that the suspension was being lifted to prevent financial losses to the companies from delays.

Full article available here.

Competition in digital markets is the focus of a seminar organized by partner Vinicius de Carvalho at USP

 

On August 2nd, 2019, partner Vinicius Marques de Carvalho organized a debate about competition in digital markets at the Universidade de São Paulo (USP).

In the event, reports published by The University of Chicago Stigler Center and by the United Kingdom, written by Professors Gene Kimmelman and Philip Marsden, respectively, were discussed. The debate also counted with guests from the private sector and the civil society.

The entrance was free and did not require a registration.

Partner Vinicius Marques de Carvalho talks about dispute over streaming regulation in Brazil, in an article published by O Globo

In an article published by ‘O Globo’ newspaper, partner Vinicius Marques de Carvalho discusses the current dispute at the Brazilian Telecommunications National Agency (Anatel) over the regulation of streaming services.

Vinicius highlights that, as stablished on the recently published “Economic Freedom Provisional Measure”, the regulation must stimulate and allow the economic activity in various forms, and be able to comprehend the competition positive effects.

Full article available here.

In an article published by Jota, VMCA’s lawyers talk about Petrobras’ Terms of Cessation of Conduct certified by Cade

Brazil’s competition authority Cade has certified two Terms of Cessation of Conduct (TCC), on June 11 and July 8, related to investigations of anticompetitive conduct by Petrobras in the markets of oil refinery and natural gas. Both TCCs are part of a single movement, based on the Federal Government desire of introducing a bigger number of private agents in the fossil fuels chain.

Due to this common goal, the documents seem, on the surface, very similar, reflecting a single competition policy for both oil and gas markets.

In VMCA’s column published by Jota, Vinicius Marques de Carvalho, Henrique Felix and Marco Micheli discuss the differences in the deals as well as the possible results for the productive chain of oil and gas.

Full article available here.

In an article published by JOTA, Vinicius Marques de Carvalho discusses the electronic payment systems’ industry transformation

In an article published by Jota, partner Vinicius Marques de Carvalho analyses the scenario for the electronic payment systems in Brazil and around the world. “In the past months, few sectors have mobilized the economic and legal news as the industry of electronic payment systems. In Brazil and elsewhere there are comprehensive and thorough transformations in this sector that challenges the existents economic and legal base and raise controversies and solutions proposals that deserve to be evaluate with attention”.

The article is the first one of a series to be published by Jota website, written by legal experts and economist about the industry of electronic payment systems.

Full article available here.

CADE doles out €125.4 million in fines for subway cartel

Partner Eduardo Frade talked with GCR about fines imposed by Cade to the companies involved in the subway cartel. The court sentenced 11 companies and 42 people to pay more than BRL 500 million.

Eduardo said this is one of the biggest and most significant cartel investigations ever tried by the authority.  According to him, it involved a major leniency agreement, search warrants, cooperation strategies, and vast evidence analysis.

Full article available here.

Petrobras agrees to sell eight oil refineries

Partner Eduardo Frade talked with Global Competition Review (GCR) about the agreement signed by Petrobras at Cade to sell eight oil refineries.

Frade said the settlement ends a long-lasting monopoly of a company that is considered a Brazilian institution. “This will still be an industry subject to antitrust concerns, as others, but this change evidently gives room to more competition.”

Full article available here.

VMCA participates in an international event about human rights in the digital era

Partners Vinicius Marques de Carvalho and Marcela Mattiuzzo will participate this week in the RightsCon, the world’s biggest event about human rights in the digital era, to be held from June 11 to 14 in Tunis, Tunisia.

Originally called the Silicon Valley Human Rights Conference, RightsCon is an annual event that rotates its location each year to new host cities around the world that are power centers for technology and human rights. In 2019, RightsCon will be hosted in Tunis, Tunisia.

VMCA partners will speak at the panel “Antitrust, consumer protection, and the digital economy”, at 12 pm on the 13th.

The event will receive more than 2,500 participants, from 130 countries, representing 700 companies, governments, and organizations.

More information is available here.