Treatment of Buyer Power in Competition Law: Case of Supermarket Retail Sector in Kenya
The Law Society of Kenya Journal, Vol. 13, No. 1, 2017
21 Pages Posted: 15 Apr 2017
Date Written: January 31, 2017
Abstract
This paper begins by examining the various approaches to defining buyer power in competition law literature, followed by an overview of Kenya's attempts to control buyer power through merger control and restrictive trade practices in the supermarket retail sector. Thereafter this paper focuses on the new provisions on buyer power introduced in the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2016 which came into effect on 13 January 2017. This paper argues that the proper enforcement of this new law may address some of the anti-competitive effects arising from the exploitative exercise of buyer power.
Keywords: buyer power, monopsony power, bargaining power, abuse of superior bargaining position, competition, consumer welfare, waterbed effect, Africa, retail sector, supermarkets, dominance, Kenya, South Africa, Australia, United Kingdom, United States, Competition Amendment Act, 2016, OECD, UNCTAD, ICN, EU
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