antitröszt

Antitröst (often translated as antitrust) refers to the body of laws, regulations, and enforcement practices aimed at maintaining competitive markets and preventing anti-competitive conduct. Core aims include preventing collusive agreements, curbing abusive conduct by firms with market power, and supervising mergers and acquisitions that could substantially reduce competition.

Key prohibitions include cartels and price-fixing; market division; bid rigging; abuse of dominant position; and mergers likely to lessen competition (merger control). Some jurisdictions also address vertical restraints, exclusive dealing, tying, and predatory pricing; treatments vary.

Enforcement is conducted by competition authorities such as the United States Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice, the European Commission's DG Competition, and national agencies. Remedies include fines, behavioral commitments, structural divestitures, and, in some cases, remedial orders to restore competition. Leniency programs encourage whistleblowers in cartel cases.

History and development began in the United States with the Sherman Act (1890) and Clayton Act (1914), and later expanded into European Union law, which treats agreements restricting competition under Articles 101 and 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. Global cooperation and harmonization have increased through guidelines and enforcement collaboration.

Debates center on balancing consumer welfare with dynamic efficiency, concerns about regulatory overreach, and challenges in digital markets where data, platforms, and network effects create new forms of market power. Common focus areas include cartels, abuse of dominance, and merger control; increasingly, antitrust rules address online platforms, access to data, interoperability, and remedies to maintain contestable markets.