Alla Pozdnakova has taken this opportunity to research and write an in-depth study of competition law problems in the liner shipping context. Her analysis is not only the first to examine the new European regime, and thus the most up-to-date study of the subject; it is in fact the first major independent study of how Articles 81 and 82 EC are construed and applied to the market conduct of liner shipping companies, addressing the relevance of such legal questions as the following to liner shipping market activity:
- When does the independent unilateral market conduct of competing carriers become collusion?
- When do sufficient efficiencies (under Article 81(3) EC) cease to outweigh negative impact on competition?
- When do certain legitimate market strategies become abuse of a collective dominant position?
- When does an oligopolistic interdependence of competitors become "conspiracy" within the meaning of Article 81 EC?
Systematically, the author considers various cooperative behaviours of shipping companies and tests them as to their compatibility with the EC Treaty competition provisions. In addition, she thoroughly analyses European Commission decisions and judgments of the European courts concerning non-shipping markets and applies them authoritatively to the shipping sector. In this way, her book provides a well-structured account that clearly identifies the legal issues that liner shipping companies are likely to face once the special treatment traditionally allowed them is withdrawn. A summary of current and prospective developments in EU competition regulation and policy in liner shipping rounds up the analysis.
Liner Shipping and EU Competition Law will bea unique and powerful resource for practitioners and policymakers as liner shipping companies restructure their agreements and market strategies to accommodate the loss of the block exemption. It is also sure to become a definitive analysis of the legal identity of the liner shipping market sector under European competition law.