§3.3.1.2 Customer preferences and purchasing behaviour

67. Differences in culture, language, lifestyle, demographics or socio-economic background can lead to local, national or regional preferences for specific products or brands (91). This can affect the competitive positions of different undertakings in different areas. Differences in customer preferences across different areas are likely to result in differences in purchasing behaviour and hence have a strong potential to limit the geographic scope of the market. 68. In particular, when the set of products that customers regard as substitutes to the products of the undertaking(s) involved differs between geographic areas, this is generally a strong indication that conditions of competition are not sufficiently homogeneous for those areas to belong to the same geographic market. 69. An examination of customers’ current geographic pattern of purchases can provide useful indicators on similarities or differences in customer preferences and conditions of competition. For example, when customers across the EEA have access to the same suppliers on similar terms, regardless of the customers’ location, for instance if they purchase from undertakings located anywhere in the EEA on similar terms, or they procure their supplies through tendering procedures in which the same set of undertakings are invited and submit bids, the geographic market is likely to be EEA-wide (92) if other factors do not contradict such finding. Similarly, when customers around the world have access to the same suppliers on similar terms regardless of the customers’ location, for instance if they purchase from undertakings located anywhere in the world on similar terms, the relevant geographic market is likely to be global (93). A market may also be defined as global from which only specific areas are excluded due to high entry barriers or other obstacles to global sourcing by customers (94). In such cases, and when geographic markets are defined based on customer location, any imports from the excluded areas into the defined geographic market would be counted in the calculation of market shares (95) and the possibility that such imports could constrain the undertaking(s) involved in the relevant market should be analysed in the competitive assessment.

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