Snapshot

Field 1 covers competition law, policy and economics across antitrust, mergers, State aid, the Foreign Subsidies Regulation and the Digital Markets Act. The notice expressly includes Articles 101 to 109 TFEU and the relationship between the DMA and competition law.

Core Concepts

• •Article 101 TFEU targets agreements and concerted practices between independent undertakings that restrict competition.
• •Cartels are the clearest Article 101 infringement, especially price-fixing, output limitation and market sharing.
• •Article 102 TFEU targets abuse by undertakings holding a dominant position.
• •Dominance is not prohibited in itself; abusive conduct is.
• •State aid control under Articles 107 to 109 TFEU examines selective advantages from state resources that distort or threaten competition and affect trade between Member States.
• •Merger control assesses whether a concentration would significantly impede effective competition.
• •The EU Merger Regulation gives the Commission jurisdiction over concentrations with an EU dimension.
• •The FSR addresses distortions caused by subsidies from non-EU governments.
• •The DMA imposes ex ante obligations on designated gatekeepers and complements competition rules.

Exam Angles

• •Keep Article 101, Article 102 and State aid logic separate.
• •For DMA questions, remember that the DMA complements competition rules; it does not replace Articles 101 and 102.
• •For FSR questions, separate foreign subsidies from Member State aid.