ICN Unilateral Conduct Workshop, 7 – 8 March 2023, Tokyo, JAPAN
Ohayo Gozaimasu, Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the ICN Unilateral Conduct Workshop here in Tokyo.
Today, many people from all over the world have gathered here to participate in this workshop and we also have many online attendants behind the monitor. As the Chair of the Japan Fair Trade Commission, I would like to express my sincere thanks to all the attendants, and welcome you all. The JFTC has planned and organized this workshop together with other co-chairs of Unilateral Conduct Working Group, the French Competition Authority and the Spanish National Markets and Competition Commission. Taking this opportunity, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to our colleague co-chairs.
The world is currently experiencing a number of crises that threaten our economic wellbeing. The pandemic, war and climate change are disrupting economies around the world. However, as the ICN Steering Group Statement issued last October correctly pointed out, "fair and open competition, effective competition policy, and active competition law enforcement are critical components of any response to the economic crisis we face today". I hope all of us here today will reaffirm the importance of competition during these difficult times through this workshop.
Against this background, the major theme of this workshop is "Developments and Challenges of Competition Policy and Enforcement in the Current Unilateral Conduct Area" and under the theme, we will cover a variety of topics that are important for developing a competitive environment.
In recent years, we have continuously discussed many issues and challenges posed by digital economy or by digital platforms in unilateral conduct area. Many of the competition issues are exclusionary or exploitative conducts by big digital platforms, and, for many agencies, how to effectively address these issues is commonly recognized as a top priority. Over the past few years, a variety of law enforcement and policymaking activities are underway in many jurisdictions, in order to address these issues caused by digital platforms which have built large ecosystems in the digital economy, and a lot of experiences and new challenges have also been accumulated. Some of these activities are covered in the report of this Working Group project led by the JFTC and its brief summary will be presented in the following plenary session.
We will also discuss both theoretical and technical challenges regarding digital markets in other sessions. I am sure that everyone will learn a lot from the discussion in this evolving field.
In addition, we will have sessions on many other important topics, including “good practices in advocacy activities”, “cooperation with other regulators”, and “future challenges”.
In each session, we invite excellent moderators and speakers who have thorough knowledge in respective topics and they will produce valuable discussions together with the other participants.
ICN is a group of rich in diversity, and workshop is a forum for practical discussions. I am sure that we will have unparalleled, diverse, and in-depth discussions by bringing each other’s experiences. We hope that you will actively participate in many sessions and share your challenges and approaches.
Although it is still a little early for the cherry blossom season, which represents spring of our country, I also hope that you will take this opportunity to enjoy early spring of Tokyo in Japan getting warmer and warmer.
Now I would like to conclude my remarks by wishing you all the best in this workshop.
Thank you very much. Arigatou Gozaimashita, Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu.
FURUYA Kazuyuki
Chair
Japan Fair Trade Commission
