NEWS

The Centre for Competition Law and Economics is pleased to announce its collaboration with the Economic Research Southern Africa (ERSA) on the Digital Platform Competition and Regulation Project. Following ERSA's Request for Proposals earlier this year, nine research proposals were selected to explore critical questions around digital platform competition and regulation. The CCLE is contributing to two of these nine research papers, with Thomas Janisch, Professor Willem Boshoff, and Katherine Stainton. Last week, researchers gathered at Stellenbosch University for a productive workshop where they presented their works-in-progress, marking an important milestone in preparation for the December conference and subsequent publications. The workshop provided an opportunity to share initial findings, test ideas and approaches, brainstorm policy insights, and work through challenges collaboratively. The project benefits from strong participation by The Competition Commission South Africa, helping to bridge the gap between academic research and practical policymaking. The CCLE looks forward to sharing the working papers and policy papers that will emerge from this important research initiative.

The CCLE was privileged to host Professor Justus Haucap from the Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE) at Heinrich Heine University, who delivered a presentation on "Merger Control, Innovation, and Industrial Policy: A European (and Personal) Perspective" at the Economic Society of South Africa Centenary Conference. Professor Haucap's insights on the evolving landscape of European competition policy provided valuable perspectives for South African practitioners and academics. We extend our sincere gratitude to Professor Haucap for sharing his expertise and contributing to this milestone conference. Our thanks also go to the organisers Economic Society of South Africa, Economic Research Southern Africa (ERSA), Fouché Venter, Prof. Willem Boshoff, and fellow panelists Prof. Nicola Theron and Pamela Mondliwa for facilitating such engaging discussions.

Prof Willem Boshoff, Co-Director of the CCLE, has recently published a policy paper on trends in South African competition policy over the last three decades, commissioned by Economic Research Southern Africa. Prof Boshoff argues that merger control and anti-cartel enforcement have followed two different and increasingly divergent paths. Merger control has been increasingly shaped by policy preferences, while anti-cartel enforcement has historically been closely tied to prior case law and developments in economic theory. While there are also important countertrends in the two areas, Prof Boshoff argues that these divergent paths present policymakers with a choice about the future direction of South African competition policy. The full paper can be viewed and downloaded here: https://econrsa.org/publications/competition-policy-in-south-africa-from-1994-to-now/

The Centre for Competition Law and Economics (CCLE) at Stellenbosch University and the Brussels Centre for Competition Policy (BCCP) at Vrije Universiteit Brussel are pleased to announce a Call for Papers for the upcoming Workshop on Data-Related Remedies in Digital Platform Markets, to be held on Friday, 14 November 2025 in Stellenbosch, South Africa. This workshop aims to bring together leading scholars, practitioners, and policymakers to discuss approaches to safeguarding competition in digital platform markets. The program will feature a series of paper presentations, co-creation sessions, and a keynote address delivered by Professor Ioannis Lianos (University College London). Selected papers will be considered for inclusion in a special journal issue of the Journal of Competition Law & Economics. We invite submissions from scholars in economics, law, and interdisciplinary research fields. Topics of interest include: Digital Platform (Non-)Neutrality and Competition, focusing on issues arising from (algorithmic) platform non-neutrality and remedies to ensure platform neutrality for business users; Data-Focused Regulation and Competition in Digital Platform Markets, examining the impact of data collection and data use regulation on competition, and the potential of data portability as a remedy against platform market power; Structural Remedies in Digital Markets, considering the desirability and effectiveness of [...]

Professor Willem H. Boshoff, Co-Director of the Centre for Competition Law and Economics,  presented his research on the evolution of South African competition policy at the "South Africa at 30 Years of Democracy" conference hosted by SALDRU at the University of Cape Town today. His paper, titled "Two competing approaches in South African competition policy: a comparative analysis of merger control and anti-cartel enforcement over 25 years," examines how South Africa's competition policy has evolved since the Competition Act of 1998. Professor Boshoff's research reveals a striking divergence between two core areas of competition policy. He demonstrates that merger control has become increasingly interventionist over the past 25 years, with this trend driven primarily by shifting policy preferences that emphasise public interest considerations and industrial policy objectives over purely competition-based concerns. In contrast, anti-cartel enforcement has remained more closely aligned with economic evidence, with prosecutions largely driven by prior probabilities rather than shifting policy preferences. This divergence highlights two competing approaches in South African competition policy. This research contributes valuable insights to ongoing debates about the future of competition policy in South Africa. As policymakers consider reforms to enhance economic dynamism while addressing historical inequalities, Professor Boshoff's analysis offers a [...]

Prof Willem Boshoff, Co-Director of the CCLE, is the holder of the prestigious Vloeberghs Chair from the Free University of Brussels in Belgium for 2024. The Chair is a teaching chair awarded biennially to a scholar working on legal issues at the intersection of international law, economics and informatics. As Chair, Prof Boshoff presented three public lectures at the Free University of Brussels, related to competition policy towards online intermediation platforms. Competition policy towards digital platforms have received much attention in recent years, but with a focus on search and social media platforms. Increasingly, e-commerce and other platforms for online commerce are receiving more policy attention – both in South Africa and beyond. Policymakers and academic are concerned over the potential impact of network effects on competition in these markets, where platforms are linking end consumers to businesses. These network effects can lead to winner-takes-all outcomes and limit the entry possibilities for new players. Prof Boshoff will be repeating these lectures online on the following dates: Lecture 1 (26 July 2024): Competition policy towards digital intermediation platforms: European antitrust and the African perspective Lecture 2 (2 August 2024): Evaluating potential competition in digital platform markets: American and European entrants versus African monopolists? [...]