This book offers guidelines for the upcoming discussions on reform, representing an attempt to work out conceptions for a better international competition order on the basis of the scientific approach 'law and economics'. It presents the dominant concepts of competition policy as a basis for an international competition order and formulates a synthesis. The result is a new neo-ordoliberal approach. Anti-dumping-measures are analysed of the effects on international competition and resource allocation, and alternatives and improvements are suggested. From national forms of competition policy a synthesis of international competition policies are derived. Currently reforms of the international competition order are heavily discussed and here a selection of the most important suggestions are presented, compared, and evaluated. Finally, this book offers strategies that might serve as second-best solutions, and though they may not be optimal for competition policy, they are politically feasible and an improvement on the current competition regulations. They would be a back-up in case the WTO competition regulations aren't realizable.

Since the failure of the Havana Charter in 1947 till the success of the combined efforts of leading antitrust authorities against mighty Microsoft, the antitrust regime has witnessed several ups and downs. Auf jeden Fall the journey was not an easy one. Moreover now antitrust regime is standing at international crossroads and is wondering about its future direction. Today, at this crucial juncture the antitrust world is confronted with several dilemmas simultaneously. Choices are to be made between national welfare or global welfare, national autonomy or global regulations, the efficiency factor or the fairness view, national champions or global champions, collective efficiency or collective inefficiency, WTO or ICN, the US model or the EU model and so on. It is widely believed among experts that to overcome these dilemmas, the world needs some truly unified international antitrust framework, which would enable the international community to achieve optimal product mix incorporating the best from all options and through such optimal product mix the global community can enjoy to a large extent advantages that competition policy has to offer. In this direction I have examined the feasibility and viability of unifying international competition policy in this work. Additionally, as the title suggests I have listed out advantages and disadvantages of such moves. Efforts for harmonization of competition laws began as early as in 1948. Till date there are several binding and non-binding arrangements made in the direction of harmonization. The WTO and the EU for effective coordination in antitrust area have launched recently new initiatives. International Competition Network, a forum for active interaction among antitrust officials, even though non-binding in nature is doing considerably good work. I believe such confidence building initiatives among nations would help in arriving at some amicable solutions, agreeable to all nations. Chapter 8 focuses on various such initiatives taken in the direction of harmonization. In the concluding chapter, I elaborate further on need of having a unified antitrust regime under a contemporary scenario. Recommendations and views of experts are also presented. At the end I discuss my views about feasibility of having a truly unified antitrust regime in foreseeable future and other possible alternative measures that might help in achieving harmonization in future.

. . . highly recommendable to anyone interested in international competition policy. Arndt Christiansen, European Competition Law Review This book provides a comprehensive and refreshing analysis of the competition issues raised by the globalisation of markets. It draws on a very wide range of economic and legal sources to assess the manifold proposals for controlling the competitive forces released by the freeing up of world markets. All those interested in these important and largely unresolved issues will find it an invaluable source of reference. Michael A. Utton, University of Reading, UK and Dongbei University of Finance and Economics, Dalian, China The globalization of market competition and business behaviour fosters globalization of cartels and monopolising mergers that can lead to abusive and predatory strategies. The globalization of competition therefore also demands an internationalization of competition policy. However, Oliver Budzinski is realistic in his assertion that supranational competition governance must be built upon the existing, predominantly national, regimes. The resulting multilevel system of antitrust institutions and authorities, he argues, is problematic for the horizontal and vertical allocation of competences. This book employs the economics of federalism to create an analytical framework which can be used for comparative analysis of stylised competence allocation rules. The result is a proposal for a sound international multilevel competition policy system that combines elements of both centralized and decentralized governance. This book provides an innovative and unique perspective on international competition policy and will be of interest to economists, legal scientists and competition authorities as well as academics and practitioners of international governance and international relations and politics.

This book examines the role and utility of competition law within the EU’s legislative and regulatory dialogue, using its response to crisis conditions as a test of its aims and abilities. As such, its main conclusion is that competition policy acts as a forum for debate as to the direction of the European integration project, while competition law can serve as a tool for aiding in the implementation of broader policy objectives. The analysis here explores the role of the general economic context in the application of competition law, the existence of identifiable baselines applicable in crisis conditions, the ability and role of national competition authorities in applying competition law, and the ways in which the European Commission’s overarching policy goals can influence the application of competition law. The decision to take an empirical approach to this research project stems from a conviction that an investigation into the real world situations faced by firms and consumers should underpin the evaluation of the applicable legal rules. Over the past number of years, the Commission has exerted more and more influence over the development of the regional and global airline industry, and this book identifies the emergence of an apparent overarching aim on the part of the Commission to create a market with a handful of ultra-competitive airlines with international reach serviced by an array of smaller feeder airlines on a regional basis. The study of Irish beef processing, on the other hand, identifies a high level of government involvement in providing the strategic thinking behind a crisis cartel scheme, and then demonstrates how the economic context exerted considerably more pressure on the government and the national court than on the competition authorities involved.

While forces of globalization have created a genuine global marketplace, global rules safeguarding the competitive process in this marketplace have not emerged. International cooperation among national regulators and enforcers is therefore needed to create a competitive global business-environment. The Future of International Competition Law Enforcement, using the variety of legal instruments available to the EU as a point of departure, undertakes an original assessment of the EU's cooperation agreements in the field of competition law The work’s focus is on the bilateral sphere, often labelled as a mere 'interim-solution' awaiting a global agreement; further attention is given to competition provisions in free trade agreements as well as the main multilateral initiatives in this field, in order to determine their relative value.

After measuring the Quality of Life and identifying the deficiences in your community, what steps should you take to improve the Quality of Life? This volume reviews methods for improving the Quality of Life that are based upon improving each of the ten domains of the Quality of Life. Steps to improve health, means of reducing environmental toxins, orientation to bring about better self-concept and mental health, and so forth. In each such area, steps are set forth for eliminating undesirable and debilitating features of the domain. Social change comes about by the application of devised steps. The process has been called "telesis". It is the application of intelligent, well-tested interventions to bring about improvement. In some cases it may effect change quickly and others may require a continuing process of adjustment and change. As a handbook for community workers, the volume provides a framework for intervention that could lead to a better tomorrow.

This book is the final study report of the key project of the National Social Science Foundation of China, “China and the Reconstruction and Innovation of International Rules in the New Era of Global Value Chain”. On the basis of a comprehensive analysis of the complex situation of international rule reconstruction and innovation in the new era of the global value chain, this book makes an in-depth and systematic analysis on six types of international rules, namely official export credit rules, international competition rules, cross-border e-commerce and digital trade rules, ISDS, multilateral agreement on investment and international regulatory cooperation. It also introduces the theories and practices of China's engagement in the new round of reconstruction and innovation of international rules.