Commission for Protection of Competition has initiated an investigation procedure for infringement of competition ex officio, against the company ”Infostan”, Public Utility Company from Belgrade, in order to investigate infringement of competition as in Article 16 of the Law on Protection of Competition.

Abuse of dominant position on the market is prohibited, especially in case of applying dissimilar conditions to equivalent transactions with other trading parties, thereby placing them at a disadvantage in relation to competitors.

Commission reasonably assumes that company Infostan posseses business sensative information on the number of customers, who do not have a household insurance, listed through unified billing system. By using its knowledge and position, company Infostan allowed joint stock insurance company ”Generali Insurance Serbia”, an insight into the market, and provided information on potential customers who do not use insurance services, whereby it applied dissimilar conditions to equivalent transactions with other market participants, placing at the disadvantage particular market participants in relation to their competitors, thereby abusing its dominant position.

Commision shall, within investigation procedure, undertake evidentiary actions in order to determine decisive facts, which are important for assessing the existence of infringement of competition.

We invite all persons who have data, documents or other relevant information which may contribute to determining the factual situation in this procedure to submit them to Commission for Protection of Competition at Savska 25, Belgrade.

Foreign Investors Council (FIC), at its annual presentation of business climate and recommendations for its improvement – ”White Book 2015”, notes visible progress in the work of Commission for Protection of Competition.

According to Foreign Investors Council, the improvements are obvious regarding the clarification of existing competition rules governing commitments, but also relations between competitors in public procurement procedures. As stated in the ”White Book” particularly noteworthy is the fact that in November 2014, Commission for the first time applied ”commitment decision” introduced by the amendments to the Law on Protection of Competition of 2013.

Extremely positive progress is, in the opinion of Foreign Investors Council, a public invitation which the Commission sent to all relevant stakeholders, to submit comments to the draft Regulation on Notification of Concentration. Commission clearly demonstrated, during a public debate on the draft Regulation, that it is willing and ready to transparently and openly discuss with the business community new laws and supporting sub-legal acts and consequently, to consider and accept comments to its own draft legislations. In addition, although periodically published opinions and decisions of Commission generally improve the existing legal framework and provide a better understanding of competition rules, an additional effort should be made in publishing updated (and comprehensive) quidelines and recommendations of the Commission, said FIC Report.

Foreign Investors Council has been issuing this publication since 2013 and it is promoted in the forth quarter every year at the prestigious event. ”White Book” is a representation of business climate in Serbia by private sector and in transparent way represents a platform for dialogue with the government authorities and a practical set of recommendations. Its aim is to allow the removal of unnecessary barriers to doing business in Serbia, which makes easier the inflow of investments.