The State Administration for Market Regulation ("SAMR") recently released the Provisions on the Prohibition of Monopoly Agreements (Draft for Comments) to seek public commentary.

Based on the enforcement practices of the anti-monopoly enforcement authorities and the experience of other jurisdictions around the world, except for certain types of monopoly agreements clearly defined in the Anti-monopoly Law, market participants have little anti-competitive effect unless they already enjoy significant market share. As a consequence of this limitation, a “safe harbor” mechanism was inserted into the Draft for Comments in order to conserve enforcement resources and to provide market participants with clearer guidance.

The Draft for Comments refines Article 45 of the Anti-monopoly Law by specifying the procedural requirements for suspending investigations. For example, new obligations of supervision and mandatory reporting have been imposed upon enforcement authorities and market participants respectively with respect to the termination of an investigation and the issuance of an investigation suspension decision letter, which provide clear guidelines that allow market participants who are under investigation to apply for the suspension of an investigation according to law.

(Source: news.163.com)