Vertical Restraints: A Look Ahead

In addition, one may ask if developing countries should take the opportunity to address particular problems in designing their competition policy towards vertical restraints. In a certain way, a possible lenient approach of certain developed countries towards some vertical restraints may be justified by their placement in a given economy, which may not be the same when analyzed through a different set of economic standards. Developing countries may need to contextualize their approach to vertical restraints considering particular elements, such as a recent introduction of competition in certain sectors, a history of economic concentration, the presence of state-owned enterprises and regulatory restraints in some markets, a weak capacity of innovation, as well as inequality in general and the need to foster mobility and access.

This paper will first analyze the current Brazilian framework for vertical restraints, including the new Brazilian legal provisions for vertical restraints control and a few past cases analyzed by the Brazilian Administrative Council for Economic Defense – CADE (I). Then, a look ahead of vertical restraints through the lens of resale price maintenance (RPM) practices will be carried out, considering RPM practices just recently had its first case condemnation in Brazil – this should likely indicate a direction for future similar cases (II).