Economic Principles and the Reform of the European Commission’s Approach to Vertical Agreements

The European Commission recently published its evaluation results from a consultation on the Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (“VBER”) and accompanying Vertical Guidelines. The consultation identifies several aspects of the rules governing vertical agreements as warranting greater clarity and/or more specific guidance, with many areas of potential revision motivated by examples arising from the growth of e-commerce. First, we consider the key messages in the Working Document. Second, we ou