Media Mentions
2008
Philip Torbøl was quoted in the May 22 edition of European Voice in relation to Microsoft's appeal against fines imposed by the European Commission for non-compliance with a 2004 ruling that it should share its code on reasonable terms with rivals and cease bundling Windows Media Player in the Windows operating system. "Industry is saying 'enough is enough'. The more the Commission insists on imposing these enormous fines, the more industry will revolt," said Mr. Torbøl. "In the absence of legal measures for private enforcement of antitrust law, the Commission has decided to take matters into its own hands and apply big fines to compensate."
Philip Torbøl, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was quoted in the March 27 issue of Competition Law360 in an article titled "Lower Fares, More Mergers On Horizon For Airlines", regarding the Open Skies agreement between the United States and the European Union. Mr. Torbøl discussed the benefits to travelers due to increased competition, as well as the inevitable consolidation in the market as airlines will have more incentive to merge. He concluded that, "This Open Skies agreement has brought us one step of the way. We're not all the way there to a liberalized EU-US air transport market. But already, on some routes it will allow much more competition, and that will bring prices down."
Philip Torbøl, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was quoted in a February 26 article published by the Danish newspaper Børsen in relation to the differences between acting before the Danish authorities and the European Commission. He explained that to be successful in cases before the European Commission you have to build up and utilize your network, understand cultural nuances and be very persistent. A spokesman for McDermott's client Dansk Kollektiv Trafik was also quoted as saying that they would not have progressed as far in their case if they had used a law firm in Copenhagen, and that "it is my experience that it is necessary to have somebody who is there [in Brussels] and who knows the system."
Philip Torbøl, Brussels, International, International Antitrust & Competition
Newly promoted partner Philip Torbøl was profiled in the January 2 issue of Global Competition Review in an article titled "McDermott Will boosts competition group in Brussels". Mr. Torbøl commented that, "The European competition practice has been booming over the last couple of years and it is an honour to follow in the footsteps of so many great lawyers."
Philip Torbøl, Antitrust & Competition, Brussels, EU Competition
2007
Philip Torbøl was quoted in a November 7 article in the Danish business newspaper Børsen in relation to an anti-dumping case concerning steel fasteners.
Philip Torbøl, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was quoted in a September 18 article in the Danish business newspaper Børsen in relation to the European Court of First Instance's Microsoft Judgment. The article discussed the Court's rejection of Microsoft's appeal of a 497 million euro fine for abuse of dominant position that the European Commission had imposed on the company in 2004. Mr. Torbøl warned that the Commission will now feel free to use the same methodology in other cases involving companies with very high market shares.
Philip Torbøl, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was interviewed in the July 4 edition of the Danish business newspaper, Børsen, in relation to the introduction of a leniency program in Danish antitrust proceedings. Mr. Torbøl explains the effect that leniency has had on cartel cases in the EU and gives his view on how the introduction of a similar system in Denmark is likely to impact new Danish cases.
Philip Torbøl, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was quoted in the June 27 issue of Competition Law360 regarding the European Commission’s decision to prohibit the merger between Ryanair and Aer Lingus. “We have seen mergers in the airline sector and the Commission has generally been promoting that airlines should merge,” Mr. Torbøl commented. The most recent and significant merger was Air France and KLM….The problem here is that it appears that the Commission is still looking relatively narrowly at the definition of the market and is afraid that the competition in the EU market is not strong enough to compensate for large market shares in a Member State. The fact that the parties did not withdraw the notification indicated that they were interested in appealing. In most instances, if the parties see that their merger isn’t going to go through, they withdraw their notification and abandon the merger.”
Philip Torbøl, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was quoted in the 2 April edition of the Danish business newspaper, Børsen, in relation to an anticipated anti-dumping complaint into Chinese screws that was withdrawn at the last minute. The article mentions that, like furniture producers, EU screw producers were not able to convince the European Commission to open an investigation. Mr. Torbøl explains that current good results for EU industry make it difficult to demonstrate injury as a consequence of the alleged dumping. In addition, he observes that the Commission seems more critical now towards complaints due to increasing EU interests on the side of the importers, as could be observed in the recent shoe and textile cases.
Philip Torbøl, Brussels, International, International Trade - Brussels
Philip Torbøl was quoted in the March 22 issue of the Danish business newspaper Børsen. He was interviewed in relation to the EU/US Open Skies negotiations, in which he is representing parties in the airline industry.
Philip Torbøl, Antitrust & Competition, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was quoted in the 5 March edition of the Danish business newspaper Børsen in relation to the EU / US Open Skies negotiations. Mr. Torbøl is mentioned as representing parts of the European airline industry.
Philip Torbøl, Antitrust & Competition, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was quoted in the 2 March edition of Competition Law360 regarding the agreement of a preliminary deal in the EU / US Open Skies negotiations. He was mentioned as an advisor fo the European aviation industry and spoke about the ultimate goal of having a completely open aviation market.
Philip Torbøl, Antitrust & Competition, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was quoted in the 6 February edition of Competition Law360 regarding the EU / US Open Skies negotiations. He was interviewed during the latest round of talks taking place in Washington, aimed at liberalizing the transatlantic aviation market and replacing current bilateral air agreements between the US and various EU Member States.
Philip Torbøl, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
Philip Torbøl was profiled in an article in the 19 January issue of the Danish business newspaper Børsen in relation to the recent expansion of the Brussels office, resulting in the largest concentration of Danish lawyers in one single Brussels law firm.
Philip Torbøl, Antitrust & Competition, Brussels, EU Competition, International Antitrust & Competition
