------NPC and CPPCC representatives heated discussion on improving anti-monopoly legislation and law enforcement

Thirteen years of sharpening a sword. On March 8, the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee's work report showed that, according to the legislative work plan, this year will amend the Anti-Monopoly Law of the People's Republic of China

"The digital economy is the future of the world." The Anti-Monopoly Law, known as the Constitution of the Market Economy, plays an important role in maintaining fair competition and releasing the vitality of the market. Perfecting anti-monopoly legislation and law enforcement and creating a fair market environment for competition are the necessary questions to regulate the healthy development of digital economy.

Antitrust is imperative

On December 14, 2020, the State Administration of Market Regulation announced that Alibaba, China Literature and Fengzhao failed to declare and implement business concentration cases according to law.

In view of the chaos of community group buying "burning money for market", on December 22, the State Administration of Market Supervision and the Ministry of Commerce held an administrative guidance meeting to standardize community group buying order, and clearly put forward the "nine shall not" requirements such as "shall not abuse the independent pricing power, implement the abuse of market dominant position behavior, and use the data advantage to" kill the mature ".

On December 24, the State Administration for Market Regulation announced that it had placed on file an investigation into Alibaba Group Holding Ltd's alleged monopolistic practices, including "one of two options", according to the law.

"Internet platform companies' illegal practice of 'one or the other' and other suspected monopolistic practices have not only disrupted the normal order of market competition, but also caused great damage to the legitimate rights and interests of small and medium-sized enterprises and consumers." Li Zhengguo, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and vice chairman of the Sichuan Province Lawyers Association, said, "The frequent anti-monopoly attacks by China's market regulators have clearly sent a strong signal that neither online nor offline can become a place outside the antitrust law."

Improve anti-monopoly legislation

"The work report of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress explicitly mentioned revising the Anti-Monopoly Law, indicating that strengthening anti-monopoly regulation is an inevitable requirement for building a new pattern of development, building a high-level socialist market economic system, and comprehensively advancing reform and opening up, as well as an inherent need for promoting high-quality development." In the opinion of Huang Yong, director of the Legal Committee of the Beijing Municipal Committee of Civil Construction and director of the Competition Law Center of the University of International Business and Economics, revising the anti-monopoly law on this occasion is not only to absorb China's existing anti-monopoly law enforcement and judicial experience, but also to solve the new problems brought about by digital technology.

"The era of the digital economy has arrived, and improving anti-monopoly laws and regulations is an inevitable requirement for the development of the digital economy." Yang Song, deputy to the National People's Congress and vice president of Liaoning University, said, "The nature, boundary and operation of data rights and other issues need to be addressed by the anti-monopoly law and related regulations."

In the face of the rapid development of digital economy, the 13th, deputy director of the standing committee of the CPPCC national committee, the science and education health body zhang MAO suggested that accurate definition of emerging industries monopoly nature, clear against all kinds of market main body, the principle of fair law enforcement, by absorbing foreign anti-trust legislation experience, perfect the relevant laws and regulations and antitrust strengthening the protection of consumers' rights and interests, maintain the fair competition market environment.

Strengthen antitrust enforcement

The law is prescribed and the order is obeyed. According to the introduction, in 2020, the market supervision department effectively strengthened the anti-monopoly law enforcement, handled 109 monopoly cases, the amount of confiscated 450 million yuan; A total of 473 cases involving concentration of business operators were concluded, of which 4 were granted conditional approval.

"Both the domestic cycle and the domestic and international cycle cannot be separated from a unified and open market system with orderly competition." Deputy to the National People's Congress, market supervision administration bureau chief, said job market regulators will be around 2020 central economic work conference, the deployment of "strengthen anti-monopoly and prevent capital sprawl" and other key tasks, adhere to the specifications and support the healthy development of the specification and in accordance with the law, adhere to the "fruit" and cure cure "as" pay equal attention to, both on regulatory enforcement and system construction, improve regulation ability, speed up the perfect competition management, efforts to build the system of fair competition environment.

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that digital infrastructure should be strengthened to create a level playing field for science and technology enterprises from all countries. Representatives of the committee firmly believe that in the beginning year of the 14th Five-Year Plan, as soon as possible to amend the anti-monopoly law, further strengthen anti-monopoly law enforcement, will usher in a full spring of digital economy quantity and quality rise, better enable high-quality economic development.

From: China Market Regulatory News                                       

Date: March 15, 2021