The NMa carries out its work amidst constant changes and developments in society. Present-day society highly values creating opportunities and choice for business and consumers. These should not in any way be unduly curtailed. To this end, an effective and efficient competition enforcement policy is required. Independence of attitude and judgment is vital in this respect. The NMa’s status of autonomous administrative agency underlines this. Moreover, the recent extension of NMa powers reflects politicians’ trust in an independent enforcement authority and the importance awarded to the NMa’s work by the legislator.
We have undertaken a considerable effort to make competition part of sound business practices. We stimulate forward-looking entrepreneurs to make use of opportunities presented by the Dutch economy and support them in their bid for innovation. We do so by imposing sanctions for infringements of competition law and by implementing alternative enforcement instruments to effect changes in market behaviour.
Healthy competition
A market which operates well requires healthy competition. Anti-competitive practices and abuse of dominant positions of undertakings may be the underlying cause of a lack of competition.
Undertakings are prohibited from restricting competition by entering into agreements with competitors (prohibition on cartels). In addition, companies with a dominant position are prohibited from abusing this position, for instance by imposing unfair conditions on buyers or by excluding competitors. Dominant positions may arise as a result of mergers or acquisitions. The NMa assesses merger proposals in order to avoid the emergence of concentrations obstructing the proper functioning of markets.
• Prohibition on Cartels
• Abuse of a Dominant Position
• Merger control
Sector-specific regulation
In addition to enforcing compliance with the Competition Act, the NMa has certain sector-specific duties and powers, namely in relation to the energy and transport sectors. These sectoral duties are carried out by two chambers of the NMa: the Office of Energy Regulation and the Office of Transport Regulation. The ‘chamber model’ guarantees a consistent use of the instruments provided under the Competition Act and sector-specific regulation. As far as possible, the advantages of healthy competition may in this way also be achieved in regulated sectors.
As of October 1st, 2009, the Office of Energy Regulation and the Office of Transport Regulation have merged into a single department: the Office of Energy and Transport Regulation (DREV).
Transparency
The NMa works as transparently as permitted by its tasks. Therefore we have published our method of operation, which sets out the way in which the 'interaction' between market players and the NMa is organised. This includes, for instance, company visits, accessibility and the submission of documents. The NMa also published its method of operation for investigating digital data in which the NMa explains how it exercises its power to inspect and copy digital data.
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