Bundeskartellamt leitet Verfahren gegen Audible / Amazon und Apple ein

By -
Link zur Mitteilung des Bundeskartellamts


Meldung vom:16.11.2015

Das Bundeskartellamt hat ein Verwaltungsverfahren gegen die Amazon-Tochtergesellschaft Audible.com und gegen die Apple Computer Inc. eingeleitet. Die Unternehmen unterhalten eine langjährige Vereinbarung über den Bezug von Hörbüchern durch Apple bei Audible für den Vertrieb über Apples Download-Shop ITunes-Store.

Andreas Mundt, Präsident des Bundeskartellamtes: „Die beiden Unternehmen haben bei dem digitalen Angebot von Hörbüchern in Deutschland eine starke Position. Daher sehen wir uns veranlasst, die Vereinbarung zwischen diesen beiden Wettbewerbern im Hörbuchbereich genauer zu prüfen. Es muss sichergestellt sein, dass den Hörbuchverlagen für den Absatz ihrer digitalen Hörbücher hinreichende Ausweichalternativen zur Verfügung stehen. Die Verfahrenseinleitung erfolgt auf die Beschwerde des Börsenvereins des Deutschen Buchhandels, die sich gegen verschiedene Verhaltensweisen von Audible wendet, unter anderem die exklusive Belieferung des ITunes-Store von Apple. Das Bundeskartellamt steht im engen Kontakt mit der Europäischen Kommission, der diese Beschwerde ebenfalls vorliegt.“

Audible ist ein führender Anbieter von Hörbüchern in Deutschland mit Schwerpunkt bei Hörbuch-Downloads, die sowohl über Audible.de als auch über die Amazon-Handelsplattform abrufbar sind. Darüber hinaus zählt Audible zu den größten Produzenten von Hörbüchern in Deutschland und Europa. Apple betreibt mit dem ITunes-Store eine der größten digitalen Medien-Handelsplattformen, die neben Musik, Videos und Apps auch eBooks und Hörbücher für den Download anbietet.


Popular posts from this blog

EU Commission opens in-depth investigation into the market for analogue terrestrial radio broadcasting in Austria

By -
13 November 2017 Related policiesTelecom Laws Improving connectivity and access Today the European Commission opened an in-depth investigation concerning the Austrian regulator's (KommAustria's) proposal to continue to regulate the wholesale market for analogue terrestrial radio broadcasting transmission in Austria by requiring the transmission network provider to grant private radio operators price regulated access to its transmission services. The markets for broadcasting transmission services were removed by the Commission from the list of EU markets recommended for ex ante regulation already in the 2007.

Whilst the current case concerns three broadcasting transmission markets in Austria, namely (i) a market for the transmission of analogue terrestrial (FM) radio broadcasting signals; (ii) a market for multiplexing of broadcasting signals (i.e. a method by which multiple signals are combined into one signal over a shared medium in order to share scarce resources) a…
Read more

How should we manage media in the age of artificial intelligence? Discussion report by the Scientific Foresight (STOA) of the EU Parliament

By -
Source:  EU Parliament - How should we manage media in the age of artificial intelligence?
Written by Philip Boucher, Mihalis Kritikos, and Carys Lawrie This year’s STOA Annual Lecture focused on how media and other information is managed and distributed in the age of artificial intelligence (AI) – including how AI can be used to disseminate information and misinformation – and also in implementing new measures to counteract fake news. The lecture marked STOA’s 30th anniversary, and was dedicated to the memory of the inaugural STOA Chair and author of the European Parliament report that led to STOA’s creation, Rolf Linkohr (1941-2017). STOA Chair Eva Kaili (S&D, Greece) opened the lecture by asking how far we can trust algorithms to make decisions for us, before introducing Carlos Moedas, European Commissioner for Research, Science & Innovation, who congratulated STOA on 30 years of championing evidence-based policy-making for EU citizens. He described AI as a political as well a…
Read more

EU Commission Answer - Follow-up in response to changes to the VAT Directive as regards rates of VAT applied to books, newspapers and periodicals

By -
Commission response
See question(s) : E-003207/2017

11 July 2017 E-003207/2017
Answer given by Mr Moscovici on behalf of the Commission
The Commission proposal on value added tax (VAT) rates applied to books, newspapers and periodicals(1) was adopted on 1 December 2016 and negotiations on the text are still ongoing(2). It is a targeted proposal, which authorises Member States, without obligation, to align the reduced VAT rates they currently apply to books, newspapers or periodicals to electronically supplied publications.
The monitoring at EU level takes place as part of the review of the scope of reduced rates in line with Article 100 of the VAT Directive(3). To this extent, information is collected in respect of the VAT rates in place in each Member State.
Such information is currently published by the Commission in the document ‘VAT rates applied in the Member States of the European Union’(4), which primarily serves as an information tool for researchers, busin…
Read more