It Is All Predatory Pricing: Margin Squeeze Abuse and the Concept of Opportunity Costs in EU Competition Law

Abstract

Margin squeeze as a stand-alone category of abuse of dominant position appears to be redundant. The imputation rule used in EU competition law in margin squeeze cases does include opportunity costs and is often a good proxy for the relevant costs of the dominant firm, although it does not only protect equally efficient competitors, but also reasonably efficient competitors. Including opportunity costs in EU competition law assessment of exclusionary practices distils every abusive margin squeeze to a predatory pricing case, caught by the Court's predatory pricing-test laid down in AKZO.