Another Look at Antitrust Deterrence in Europe

If competition policy interventions failed to substantially deter anticompetitive behavior, their overall impact on consumer welfare would be limited to remedying consumer harm only in the behavior detected and punished. This is likely to be modest. Therefore, effective deterrence must be the ultimate goal of competition policy. An antitrust authority has control of many, but not all, levers to ensure the potential perceived likely punishment can act as a sufficient deterrent. This article builds on the existing literature and the current approach in Europe and suggests that antitrust authorities should try to maximize the use of all the relevant elements of antitrust punishment to ensure that optimal deterrence could be achieved.