Global competition experts meet to discuss further co-operation

KYOTO, April 11, 2008 — Competition authorities from around the world will gather at the International Competition Network (ICN) annual conference in Kyoto, Japan, from April 14 to 16, 2008.

It comes after a successful year for the organization, which has seen membership grow to 102 competition agencies from 16 when it was founded just seven years ago. Most recently, ICN recommended practices were a focal point of a major conference in India, which is updating its approach to merger review.

“Competition law is no longer the preserve of a small number of experts, working within the boundaries of their own jurisdiction, but has become the basis for an international community,” said Sheridan Scott, Chair of the ICN Steering Group.

This year’s conference will include panel presentations and discussions on three important areas for competition agencies and for business – cartels, mergers and unilateral conduct/dominance – and a variety of other topics such as assessment of agency effectiveness.

The ICN annual conference is the most globally representative meeting of competition agency officials and private sector representatives from the legal, economic, academic and business fields. Competition experts from around the world meet to review the results of their work over the past year to enhance effective co-ordination, co-operation and convergence in competition law practice, enforcement and policy, and to develop work plans for the coming year.

Around 250 representatives from 74 agencies will attend this year’s conference, as well as more than 100 non-governmental advisors and about 130 observers and guests. It will rank among the largest ICN conferences held since the ICN was founded in 2001.

The ICN is an informal network of competition agencies from developed and developing countries, with the common aim of addressing practical antitrust enforcement and policy issues. It is a results-based, project-oriented organisation. ICN work takes place in practical working groups, with members and non-governmental advisors conducting discussions, typically via teleconference or e-mail. Members convene annually to discuss working group projects and their implications for enforcement.

For more information, please visit the ICN Web site at www.internationalcompetitionnetwork.org.

For media enquiries, please contact:
Marilyne Nahum
Communications Advisor
Competition Bureau Canada
External Relations and Public Affairs Branch
1-819-953-9760