Anti-Competitive Agreements according to Kosovo’s Law on the Protection of Competition – Case Study of the Insurance Market

• Authors: Ceku Orhan , Shaqiri Mentor Q.
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Competition law is an area which links the economy with the law and is very important for the functioning of a free market economy. Anti-competitive agreements, along with the abuse of dominance and concentrations of undertakings, are the subject matter of the Law on the Protection of Competition (LPC) of the Republic of Kosovo. Anti-competitive agreements can be horizontal or vertical in nature. The following paper deals with agreements and other multilateral practices prohibited under Kosovo’s Law on the Protection of Competition. The LPC explicitly states also specific circumstances where the prohibition does not apply – these are covered by the so called 'exceptions and allowances' section of the LPC. In this respect, the LPC has incorporated the entirety of the principles covered by Article 101 TFEU. The insurance market of the Republic of Kosovo was analyzed in the context of this case study, which has all the features of an oligopoly including: a limited number of participating firms, product standardization, interdependence in controlling prices and, difficulty of new market entry. From this perspective, the insurance market is highly problematic as far as violations of the provisions of the law dealing with anti-competitive agreements are concerned. The analysis is conducted based on the enforcement measures undertaken by the Kosovo Competition Authority and reviewed by the judiciary of the Republic of Kosovo. Taking into consideration that Kosovo is a young country facing special transitional challenges and aiming to become a member of the European Union, much needed reforms are to take place still. The aim of this analysis is thus to contribute to further development of competition law in Kosovo through the analysis of current market situation, domestic legislation and its compliance with EU rules.

FR

L’article suivant concerne des accords et des pratiques interdites par la loi sur la protection de la concurrence du Kosovo. La loi mentionnée ci-dessus prévoit également circonstances atténuantes exceptionnelles pour l'application des dispositions concernant les accords anticoncurrentiels. À cet égard, la loi sur la protection de la concurrence a incorporé les principes de l'article 101 du Traité sur le fonctionnement de l'Union européenne. Dans ce contexte, l’article analyse le marché de l’assurance dans la République du Kosovo, qui possède toutes les caractéristiques d'oligopole, y compris le nombre limité d'entreprises, la normalisation des produits, l'interdépendance dans le contrôle des prix et les difficultés de nouvelles entreprises qui entrent le marché. Dans cette perspective, le marché de l'assurance est très problématique en termes de violation des dispositions concernant les accords anticoncurrentiels. L'analyse est effectuée à la base de sanctions introduits par l’Autorité de la concurrence de Kosovo, ainsi que par la Cour de la République du Kosovo. En prenant en compte que le Kosovo est un pays jeune, avec des défis pour la transition, qui a pour son objectif de devenir un membre de l’Union européenne, certains réformes doivent être mises en oeuvre. En effet, le but de l’article est de donner la contribution pour les développements de la loi de la concurrence au Kosovo, par l'analyse de la situation actuelle du marché, de la législation nationale et de sa cohérence avec des règles du droit de l’Union européenne.

Keywords

EN

anti-competitive agreements; competition law; insurance; Kosovo; oligopoly

• Publisher: Uniwersytet Warszawski. Wydział Nauk Ekonomicznych
• Journal: Yearbook of Antitrust and Regulatory Studies
• Year: 2016
• Volume: 9(13)
• Pages: 191-208

Dates

published

2016-06-30

printed

2016-06-30

Contributors

author

Ceku Orhan

• Orhan M. Çeku - PhD in the field of law, a lecturer of Commercial Law at Pjeter Budi College, Prishtina, Republic of Kosovo

author

Shaqiri Mentor Q.

• Mentor Q. Shaqiri - PhD in the field of economics, as lecturer as Iliria College, Prishtina, Republic of Kosovo

References

• Ahmetaj, S. (2012). Fushëveprimi i Rregullores 2001/25 në lëmin e sigurimeve. Insurance Bulletin, Kosovo Insurance Association, 2.
• Kabashi, S. and Gani, A. (2012). Konkurrenca dhe e drejta e konkurrencës. Prishtina: College Biznesi.
• Kryeziu, N. (2013). Industria e sigurimeve në Kosovë sfidat dhe mundësit. Insurance Bulletin, Kosovo Insurance Association, 5.
• Mazreku, S. (2012). Ligji mbi Sigurimin e Detyruar nga Autopërgjegjesia. Insurance Bulletin, Kosovo Insurance Association, 2.
• Papajorgji, E., E Drejta Ndërkombëtare dhe Shqiptare e Konkurrencës, Tirana: International Institute for Private, Commercial and Competition Law.
• Vickers, J. (2003). Competition is everything. The Economist, 6-12 December.
• Zajmi, F. (2012). Sigurimet në Kosovë, Insurance Bulletin, Kosovo Insurance Association, 2.
• Zajmi, I. (2012), E Drejta Europiane e Konkurrencës. Tirana.

Identifiers

ISSN

1689-9024

DOI

10.7172/1689-9024.YARS.2016.9.13.11