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European Commission's new Guidelines for assessing exclusionary abuses of dominance

Published

7 September 2026

Topic

regulatory

Geography

Europe

Source

Read at freshfields.com

Verified

Fusion42 · 7 September 2026 · Fusion42 review

The European Commission has released final Guidelines on exclusionary abuses of dominance which soften some earlier aggressive proposals but largely maintain a low burden of proof on firms for certain conduct like exclusivity rebates, aiming for more interventionist enforcement under Article 102 of the EU Treaty.

◆ The Wire takeaway

You face a stricter European antitrust regime where handling exclusivity rebates and similar conduct now demands detailed compliance or defence strategies. Firms reliant on market dominance must prepare for higher scrutiny and a tougher rebuttal burden despite softened language in the Commission's final guidelines.

Coverage

2 sources · first reported 4 Sep 2026 · latest 7 Sep 2026

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Topics

eu-competitionantitrustmarket-dominanceregulatory-guidelinesarticle-102