SGAE (Spain’s ASCAP) fined €1,766,744 for abuse of dominance

Spain’s Comisión Nacional de la Competencia (CNC) has fined the Sociedad General de Autores y Editores (SGAE) €1,766,744 for abuse of dominance in the market for IP rights management. SGAE is the main collecting society for songwriters, composers and music publishers in Spain.

Three restaurants had filed a complaint with the CNC in early 2010, alleging that SGAE was engaging in abusive practices with regard to the fees it was charging for the rights to play music in their banquet venues. The CNC’s subsequent investigation found that SGAE had abused its dominant position by applying “discriminatory and non-transparent” discounts and an “unfair and discriminatory” substitute fee for authorizations for the public broadcast of musical works at wedding, baptism, and communion dances. The CNC explains that although antitrust laws “do not prevent dominant operators from applying different treatment to their customers or suppliers,” it must be done based on “objective criteria” and transparency, and known to the parties beforehand.

Full content: Comision Nacional de la Competencia

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