Article 22 EUMR and Call-in Powers as Tools of Jurisdictional Creep in Merger Control
Roč.33,č.4(2025)
This paper analyses the evolving use of Art. 22 EU Merger Regulation (EUMR) and national call-in powers as mechanisms for capturing below-threshold killer acquisitions. In September 2024, the Court of Justice (Court) delivered its ruling in Illumina/Grail, rejecting the expansionist interpretation of Art. 22 EUMR by the European Commission (EC), which extended its jurisdiction by allowing Member States to refer transactions that did not meet any national thresholds. Despite this clear judicial guidance, the EC appears to interpret the judgment less restrictively, accepting referrals based on national competition authorities’ call-in powers. The paper argues that the EC effectively sidesteps the Court’s judgment and undermines legal certainty. Whether this approach is in line with the ruling of the Court remains to be seen; the General Court will provide an answer in Nvidia/Run:ai.
For the time being, it is necessary to assess whether call-in powers are an appropriate tool. The paper holds that while they may address the regulatory gap, they are largely non-selective, fragmentary, unpredictable and disproportionate. However, this fragmentation presents a regulatory opportunity: the call-in model may be designed in a way that upholds the underlying principles of merger control. The paper concludes with policy recommendations, advocating for a selective, transparent and objective approach that preserves legal certainty – supported by soft law and the use of comfort letters.
merger control; below-threshold transactions; killer acquisitions; regulatory gap; article 22 EUMR; Dutch clause; Illumina/Grail; Nvidia/Run:ai; call-in model; call-in powers; notification criteria; legal certainty
689–707
Igor Kučera
BDO Legal s. r. o., advokátní kancelář, Brno
Junior Associate
ACM: European Court of Justice takes away opportunity to assess acquisition by Microsoft, new power is needed. Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.acm.nl/en/publications/acm-european-court-justice-takes-away-opportunity-assess-acquisition-microsoft-new-power-needed
Action brought on 10 January 2025 in Case T-15/25, Nvidia Corp. Vs. European Commission. Available at: https://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?docid=295715&doclang=EN
Amendment to the Act on the Protection of Competition (ZOHS). Chambers of Deputies (CZ) [online]. Parliamentary print No. 853/0 [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.psp.cz/sqw/text/tiskt.sqw?O=9&CT=853&CT1=0
Annual Report on Competition Policy Developments in Denmark. OECD [online]. DAF/COMP/AR(2024)9. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://one.oecd.org/document/DAF/COMP/AR(2024)9/en/pdf
Annual Report on Competition Policy Developments in Italy. OECD [online]. DAF/COMP/AR(2024)19. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://one.oecd.org/document/DAF/COMP/AR(2024)19/en/pdf
Bill No. 8296 on merger control and amending various laws. Chambre des Députés du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.chd.lu/en/dossier/8296
Commission approves acquisition of Run:ai by NVIDIA. European Commission [online]. [online]. Press release IP/24/6548. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_24_6548
Commission Decision of 17 August 2023 in Case M.11212, Qualcomm/Autotalks. Available at: https://competition-cases.ec.europa.eu/cases/M.11212
Commission Decision of 17 May 2017 in Case M.8228, Facebook/WhatsApp. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/decisions/m8228_493_3.pdf
Commission Decision of 19 April 2021 in Case M.10188, Illumina/Grail. Available at: https://competition-cases.ec.europa.eu/cases/M.10188
Commission Decision of 26 June 2024 in Case M.11241, EEX/Nasdaq Power. Available at: https://competition-cases.ec.europa.eu/cases/M.11241
Commission takes note of the withdrawal of referral requests by Member States concerning the acquisition of certain assets of Inflection AI by Microsoft. European Commission [online]. Press release IP/24/4727 [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_24_4727
Commission’s statement of 18 December 2023 in Case M.11033, Adobe/Figma. European Commission [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://competition-cases.ec.europa.eu/cases/M.11033
Communication from the Commission – Guidance on the application of the referral mechanism set out in Article 22 of the Merger Regulation to certain categories of cases. European Commission [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=oj:JOC_2021_113_R_0001
Competition Act 2002. The Law Reform Commission [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://revisedacts.lawreform.ie/eli/2002/act/14/revised/en/html#SEC18A
CONNOLLY, D. et al. Predictably Uncertain: Managing Merger Control Call-In Risk at Local Level in the EU. Kluwer Competition Law Blog [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://competitionlawblog.kluwercompetitionlaw.com/2025/04/01/predictably-uncertain-managing-merger-control-call-in-risk-at-local-level-in-the-eu/
COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION. Council Regulation (EC) No 1310/97 of 30 June 1997 amending Regulation (EEC) No 4064/89 on the control of concentrations between undertakings. In: EUR-lex [online]. Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:31997R1310
CUNNINGHAM, C., EDERER, F., MA, S. Killer Acquisitions. Journal of Political Economy. 2021, Vol. 129, no. 3. DOI: http://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3241707
Decision of the Belgian Competition Authority of 21 June 2023 in Case 23-RPR-17, Proximus/EDPnet. Available at: https://www.belgiancompetition.be/sites/default/files/content/download/files/ABC-2023-RPR-17%20PUB.pdf
DESMEDT, A. “Call-in power” voor de Belgische Mededingingsautoriteit? LinkedIn [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/axel-desmedt-57a9715_nota-call-in-activity-7318688083053350914-Tztk/
EU Enlargement. European Commission [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://commission.europa.eu/topics/eu-enlargement_en
EUROPEAN COMMISSION. Green Paper on the Review of Council Regulation (EEC) No 4064/89. COM/2001/0745 final. In: EUR-lex [online]. Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52001DC0745
EUROPEAN COMMISSION. Guidelines on the applicability of Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to horizontal co-operation agreements. In: EUR-lex [online]. 2023/C 259/01 [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=oj:JOC_2023_259_R_0001
EUROPEAN COMMISSION. Guidelines on vertical restraints. In: EUR-lex [online]. C/2022/4238 final. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=intcom:C(2022)4238
EUROPEAN COMMISSION. Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11485 – Brasserie Nationale/Boissons Heintz). In: EUR-lex [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/3174/oj
EUROPEAN COMMISSION. The Future of EU Merger Control [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.astrid-online.it/static/upload/vest/vestager-s-speech---the-future-of-eu-merger-control.pdf
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT. Questionnaire to the Commissioner-Designate Teresa Ribera [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://hearings.elections.europa.eu/documents/ribera/ribera_writtenquestionsandanswers_en.pdf
Ex-post transaction review by antitrust authorities – one year after the Towercast judgment. PwC [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.pwc.pl/en/articles/one-year-after-the-towercast-judgment.html
Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 16 March 2023 in Case C-449/21, Towercast SASU v Autorité de la concurrence. Available at: https://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?text=&docid=271327&pageIndex=0&doclang=EN
Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 3 September 2024 in Joined Cases C-611/22 P and C-625/22 P, Illumina Inc. v European Commission and Grail LLC v European Commission. Available at: https://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?docid=289718&doclang=EN
KŐMÍVES, A. Hungarian “Towercast” judgment highlights difficulties of challenging a merger under EU abuse of dominance rules. Lexology [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=12362232-7210-46d6-b28d-5b193a1cf959
LEWIS, C. Qualcomm abandons Autotalks deal amid antitrust scrutiny. MLex [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.mlex.com/mlex/articles/2099600/qualcomm-abandons-autotalks-deal-amid-antitrust-scrutiny
LLANOS, A. A New Global Antitrust Regime and Its Chilling Effect on Mergers. International and Comparative Law Review [online]. University of Miami School of Law [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://international-and-comparative-law-review.law.miami.edu/a-new-global-antitrust-regime-and-its-chilling-effect-on-mergers/
Luxembourg’s New Bill on Merger Control. Elvinger Hoss Prussen [online]. 22. 12. 2023 [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://elvingerhoss.lu/publications/luxembourgs-new-bill-merger-control
MATTIOLO, P., MENSAH, G. The Italian Competition Authority refers to the Commission the NVIDIA/Run:ai acquisition: Some considerations in the aftermath of Illumina/Grail and the US elections. Kluwer Competition Law Blog [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://repository.uantwerpen.be/docman/irua/5046edmotoMd2
Merger control, FDI and FSR – The triple impact. Herbert Smith Freehills [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.herbertsmithfreehills.com/insights/reports/global-ma-report-2024-ready-for-take-off/merger-control-fdi-and-fsr-the-triple-impact
Mergers and merger control. Danish Competition and Consumer Authority [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://en.kfst.dk/competition/mergers
Mergers below the control thresholds: Following the public consultation, the Autorité is continuing its work to propose a reform ensuring effective control. Autorité de la Concurrence [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.autoritedelaconcurrence.fr/en/press-release/mergers-below-control-thresholds-following-public-consultation-autorite-continuing
MINISTRY OF ECONOMIC AFFAIRS AND CLIMATE POLICY (NL). Public consultation: Draft bill on the ACM’s power to call in below-threshold mergers (Wet inroepbevoegdheid ACM) [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.internetconsultatie.nl/inroepbevoegdheid/b1
Mission Letter to Teresa Ribera Rodríguez. European Commission [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://commission.europa.eu/document/download/33d74e86-3a17-472c-ba93-59d1606bbc20_en?filename=mission-letter-ribera_0.pdf
MUNDT, A. [Tweet on merger control]. X.com [online]. 10. 4. 2024 [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://x.com/AMundt_BKartA/status/1846818854724391068
NERSESJAN, R. The Digital Markets Act has entered into force. ANTITRUST. 2022, Vol. 2022, no. 4.
NERUDA, R. et al. New Competition Tool à la tchèque? Havel & Partners [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://en.havelpartners.blog/new-competition-tool-a-la-tcheque
Opinion of Advocate General delivered on 21 March 2024, Illumina Inc. vs. European Commission and Grail LLC vs. European Commission, Joined Cases C-611/22 P and C-625/22 P. Available at: https://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?text=&docid=284097&pageIndex=0&doclang=EN
Public consultation on merger control – response to questions. Havel & Partners [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.havelpartners.cz/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/havelpartners_verejna-konzultace-ke-spojovani_otazky_final.pdf
Public consultation on the introduction of a merger control framework for addressing below-threshold mergers. Autorité de la Concurrence [online]. [cit. 17. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.autoritedelaconcurrence.fr/en/press-release/public-consultation-introduction-merger-control-framework-addressing-below-threshold
Recommended Practices for Merger Notification and Review Procedures. International Competition Network [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.internationalcompetitionnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/MWG_NPRecPractices2018.pdf
Speech at the 28th Annual Competition Conference of the International Bar Association. European Commission [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/speech_24_4582
Statement by Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager on the Court of Justice judgment on the Illumina/GRAIL merger jurisdiction decisions. European Commission [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/files/document/print/ip/statement_24_4525/STATEMENT_24_4525_EN.pdf
Statistics on Mergers. European Commission [online]. DG COMP [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://competition-policy.ec.europa.eu/mergers/statistics_en
Summary of replies to the Public Consultation on Evaluation of procedural and jurisdictional aspects of EU merger control. European Commission [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://competition-policy.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2021-04/summary_of_replies_en.pdf
SURA, M., WIESE, E., SCHREITTER, F. von. Call in the Merger Cavalry – How new intervention powers are transforming merger control. Hogan Lovells [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.hoganlovells.com/en/publications/call-in-the-merger-cavalry-how-new-intervention-powers-are-transforming-merger-control
TETI, E., RAFFAELLI, A. Merger Control 2024: Italy. Chambers and Partners [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://practiceguides.chambers.com/practice-guides/merger-control-2024/italy
The Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority calls for a call-in power – again. Dittmar & Indrenius [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://Www.Dittmar.Fi/Insight/The-Finnish-Competition-And-Consumer-Authority-Calls-For-A-Call-In-Power-Again/
The future of European competitiveness: In-depth analysis and recommendations. In: European Commission [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://commission.europa.eu/document/download/ec1409c1-d4b4-4882-8bdd-3519f86bbb92_en?filename=The%20future%20of%20European%20competitiveness_%20In-depth%20analysis%20and%20recommendations_0.pdf
The Use of Structural Presumptions in Antitrust – Note by Hungary. OECD [online]. [cit. 27. 7. 2025]. Available at: https://www.gvh.hu/pfile/file?path=/en/gvh/analyses/oecd_submissions/oecd-submission-2024/20241204_structural-presumptions&inline=true
VALENTINO, S., NEGRINOTTI, M. AGCM’s new clothes: merger control call-in, market investigations, and other recent reforms of Italian competition law (Italy). Journal of European Competition Law & Practice [online]. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jeclap/lpaf034
Tato práce je licencována pod Mezinárodní licencí Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 .
Copyright © 2025 Igor Kucera