A PYMNTS Company

Belgium: Proposed Amendment to combat predatory innovation

By  |  July 23, 2018

On July 18, members of the Belgian Socialist Party proposed law amending the Belgian Economic Law Code, relating to predatory innovation. The purpose of this amendment is to combat predatory innovation practices, which is defined in the proposal as the alteration of one or more technical elements of a product whose sole purpose is to restrict or eliminate competition.

    Get the Full Story

    Complete the form to unlock this article and enjoy unlimited free access to all PYMNTS content — no additional logins required.

    yesSubscribe to our daily newsletter, PYMNTS Today.

    By completing this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from PYMNTS and to the sharing of your information with our sponsor, if applicable, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.

    The amendment was put forward by Emir Kir, Fabienne Winckel, Paul-Olivier Delannois, Karine Lalieux, and Jean-Marc Delizee, members of the bicameral Belgian Federal Parliament. Their proposal argues that sanctioning predatory innovation will make it possible to consecrate the principle of “think small first” and promote real innovation for the benefit of the consumer.

    With a focus on SMEs, these politicians argue that devoting such a regime to predatory innovation will help SMEs in two ways: (i) protecting them from anti-competitive practices that are now partially exempt from sanctions; and (ii) by unifying a case law that has now been broken, which will improve their legal security.

    Full Content: Lachambre

    Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.