報告書番号

Y15015

タイトル（和文）

電力のセット販売割引と法的課題－米国反トラスト法の議論の整理－

タイトル（英文）

Legal Issues in Bundled Discounts of Electricity -The discussion of antitrust law in the United States-

概要 （図表や脚注は「報告書全文」に掲載しております）

電力自由化後のセット販売割引に対する独禁法適用の在り方を示すため、対応する米国反トラスト法（独禁法）の議論を調査した。その結果、不当廉売の判例を根拠に、費用と価格に着目した「割引総額充当テスト」というものが提案されていること、しかし、違法性判断過程における同テストの位置づけは見解ごとに異なっており、政府機関などはこれを違法性判断基準そのものではなく、いわゆるセーフハーバーとして提案していることなどを明らかにした。
日本では、公取委=経産省によるガイドライン改定案において、セット販売割引を不当廉売として規制する方向性が示されている。しかし、米国の議論に照らして、また、典型的な不当廉売とセット販売割引にはその行為の性質が異なることなどに鑑みると、改定案の立場は過剰規制のおそれがあることを示した。

概要 （英文）

While many firms planning to enter the retail electricity market will bundle and discount electricity and other products, risk remains as to whether such bundled discounts could be construed as illegal predatory pricing or tying under the Anti-Monopoly Act (AMA). This report surveys the U.S. antitrust law precedents and discussions concerning bundled discounts, and proposes proper application of the AMA to bundled discount schemes in electric retail markets.
In the U.S., some considers bundled discounts are similar to predatory pricing, and proposes Discount Attribution Test (DAT) based on a Supreme Court precedent on predatory pricing. Those who regard bundles discounts as tying arrangements accept DAT as a safe harbor, but require additional proof that competition is hampered.
As to the application of the AMA, our suggestions are as follows. First, when the competitors can offer the same or similar bundled products, and thus "bundle-to-bundle" competition is reasonably possible, bundled discounts should be legal unless the price of the whole bundle is below cost. Second, judging from the Japan Fair Trade Commission's related guidelines and the comments of prominent law professors, bundled discounts may constitute illegal tying when the amount of discounts is so big that almost all consumers will choose bundled products. Third, though the draft Guidelines for proper electric power trade would evaluate bundled discounts as predatory pricing, condemning them as predatory pricing may risk false positives. This is because, while predatory pricing causes loss and is an unreasonable strategy without anticompetitive purpose, bundled discounts will be reasonable because its cash flow could be positive. Before enforcing the AMA to bundled discounts of electricity, we should well consider its procompetitive effects like the inducements of entries and the join cots savings, etc.

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