§5.1 Comparator-based methods

(85) The passing-on related price effect at various stages in the supply chain may be computed by estimating directly the increase in prices or change in margins that has resulted from the impact of the initial overcharge. When assessing whether an overcharge is passed on from the direct purchaser, this method compares the price set by the direct purchaser during the infringement period with the price set in the comparator market(s). (86) When estimating the passing-on related price effect, the court may estimate the differences between the observed and the counterfactual prices or margins (77) using the same comparator-based methods as used to compute the initial overcharge. While the underlying concept of these methods are described in detail in the Practical Guide, further guidance on the implementation of such methods in the context of passing-on is provided in the sections below. (87) Comparator-based methods have the advantage that they use real-life data observed on the same or a similar market (78). They rely on the fact that the comparator scenario can be considered representative of the non-infringement scenario. These methods have also been recognised and employed by competition authorities in Europe in order to undertake analyses of similar character as the estimation of passing-on, e.g. when performing ex-post evaluation of competition policy (79). (88) When employing the comparator-based method, one would ideally compare the price or margin during the infringement period with the exact same market absent the infringement. However, it is naturally not possible to know exactly how a market would have evolved in the absence of an infringement. For instance, it may be the case that important factors affecting the prices set by the direct purchaser, such as changes in demand or prices of other inputs, will not have a similar impact on prices during the infringement period and in the counterfactual scenario. (89) These factors are crucial to have in mind when considering whether a given comparator market is suitable as the counterfactual scenario. As further explained in section 5.1.1, various techniques are available to account for differences between the market affected by the infringement and the comparator markets. Whether the level of similarity between the market on which the infringement took place and the comparator markets is considered to be sufficient in order for the results of such comparison to be used to estimate passing-on depends on the national legal systems (80).

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-09-07