The General Court confirms the decisions ordering an inspection taken by the Commission against Orange in connection with a possible abuse of a dominant position

Orange (known as France Télécom until 1 July 2013) is a French public limited company which provides Internet access to companies and individuals. In 2011, a competitor known as Cogent lodged a complaint with the French Competition Authority, believing that Orange had abused its dominant position by a number of practices in the sector for reciprocal interconnection services in the area of Internet connectivity. In 2012, the Competition Authority found that the practices alleged against Orange were not substantiated or did not constitute an abuse of a dominant position.

In parallel, the Commission had opened a procedure against Orange into highly similar practices. After the Competition Authority’s decision, the Commission, by decisions of 25 and 27 June 2013,1 ordered Orange to undergo an inspection (‘the inspection decisions’). The inspection took place between 9 and 13 July 2013 on four of Orange’s premises. Taking the view that the Commission did not have the right to order that inspection on its premises in the circumstances of the case, Orange brought an action before the Court seeking the annulment of those decisions.

By today’s judgment, the Court dismisses Orange’s action and confirms the Commission’s inspection decisions. 

read full article at General Court