the Federal Antimonopoly service celebrates anniversary: July 14, 1990 was established the State Committee of the RSFSR for Antimonopoly policy and support of new economic structures — the first Russian competition authority, the predecessor of the current FAS. The development of competition and anti-monopoly in the market, tariff regulation and monitoring of public procurement, prevention of cartels and prevention of unfair competition: all these questions are answered Antimonopoly service. More than half of the jubilee period of the FAS is headed by Igor Artemyev, who answered the questions of “MK”.
— Igor Yuryevich, the main task of FAS is known — the protection and development of competition in the country. What is your assessment of our economy is becoming more competitive?
For the past 30 years have occurred in this sense, tectonic changes. In the Soviet economy it was enough to have the whole country, for example, one plant-the monopolist in the production of refrigerators, one plant for the production of radio systems. In the rapidly changing environment of the fourth industrial revolution for successful development of the country is not enough. In my opinion, the vast majority of sectors of the Russian economy, including in innovative industries, the level of competition within the country is quite high. Often this is facilitated by partnership with foreign advanced companies. In the conditions of falling world oil prices and pandemics in the fashion industry, many Russian companies have demonstrated a remarkable flexibility. So, during the peak of the distribution COVID-19 the speed of delivery of products in the trading network increased 7 times with the growth of demand for products 3 times. In terms of the centralized Soviet economy to achieve was impossible. However, in recent years, we have seen that public companies increasingly consolidate their position in the market. This is especially noticeable in the banking sector. In addition, state-owned companies occupy a leading position in the defense industry and security. This is partly due to Western sanctions that primarily hit the financial sector and the country’s defense. However, natural monopoly is justified only where the state seeks to ensure access of entrepreneurs and citizens to the infrastructure. They must be under strict antitrust scrutiny. And, in some cases, the Corporation do not need us. For example, with the duties of GK Avtodor, in my opinion, perfectly would manage the private players.
— In the 16 years that you’re in charge of the service, greatly changed the antitrust laws. What legislative acts do you consider most important?
— to increase the level of healthy competition in the Russian economyICA, we took four of the Antimonopoly package of laws, which received high appraisal from the experts of the OECD abroad. Let me remind you that last year Russia, including thanks to the efforts of the FAS, entered the top 10 countries with the best legislation and enforcement in the antitrust sphere. In addition, there were anti-monopoly regulation in the various sectors. We have achieved more than 100 antitrust amendments to Federal trade laws. The fact that in many sectors of the economy has its own specificity. For example, energy is very different from water. In our submission, the government took over thousands of Antimonopoly acts. In a clear and robust system in the Antimonopoly regulation. But the work in the legislative arena we have no end.
— what are the areas?
Three and a half years ago we prepared the law on the fundamentals of tariff regulation. This act of higher legal force explains what should be in the tariff and what should never be. Because now very few people understand how to form rates. Today, the acts of the government on pricing is more like a patchwork quilt, they are very different in different industries. Moreover, this “salad” sometimes leads to the fact that in one region, for example, can the door be two water stations, where rates for supply of 1 cubic meter of produced water can vary up to 50 times! Such negative trends are gaining momentum in healthcare. It is no secret that there are pharmaceutical companies that for various reasons may refuse to sell our country, for example, only existing in the world the drug that saves the lives of children. Also we are very concerned about hyperactivity transnational IT giants, who take control huge information flows and begin to manipulate them, leading in some cases to discrimination against whole Nations and peoples. Some international IT giants, taking advantage of a dominant market position, are beginning to raise prices for consumers and ruining competitors. We intend to firmly stop this practice. FAS has published the fifth “digital” antitrust package. Unfortunately, its adoption has prevented a pandemic, but we hope that the Duma will adopt it in the autumn session. Our portfolio of bills there are also initiatives in the field of public procurement and defence contracts.
a Lot of violations of the Antimonopoly legislation for the year detects your service? In which sectors of the economy most violations?
10 years ago, the Central apparatus of the FAS led about 2 thousand merger cases per year, now about 200. This is evidence that in our country for the better has changed the corporate culture and valuableosti. Today almost all large companies, with the exception of the particularly odious, have an internal antitrust compliance, there are compliance officers within the company to prevent violations of the Antimonopoly legislation. As a result of violations in the market becomes smaller.
the Most problematic sector — the pharmaceutical market and the market of road construction. Cartels here very costly to the taxpayers and the state budget. Together with law enforcement we try to prevent such crimes. Most often, proceedings are instituted by article 10 of the Law on competition — abuse of dominant position. And here, without a doubt, the absolute leaders for many years remained a natural monopoly. In the list of abuse — the denial of access to the infrastructure of private companies, the imposition of onerous conditions, price fixing and collusion on market-sharing. By the way, a cartel includes not only the fines. Some fans of the cartel are already in jail. Often cases are due to unfair competition. Some entrepreneurs are trying to assign foreign trademarks, technology, spread false rumors about competitors.
— it is believed that in Russia a lot of monopolies, either natural (e.g., gas and rail), and not (for example, at the level of regional utilities). Do you agree with this assessment and how your service is struggling with the dominance of monopolies?
— I have always consistently opposed natural monopolies. Because there are always selfish people, who, using his position, will try to fill their pockets. But it is important to understand why to build the main gas and oil pipelines, when there is a pipe “Gazprom” and “Transneft”? You do not need. That’s the essence of natural monopoly.
on the other hand, in the Moscow aviation hub airports or ports far East has long compete with each other. But why are they the old fashioned way are called natural monopolies? They are also fiercely competitive. I am not advocating the partition of Gazprom or Russian Railways. But why not sell 25% of the railway monopoly and the money to build a new path? However, the state will not lose control over a strategic industry. But would love to come to portfolio investors. Therefore, one of the greatest steps that we would like to do through the national plan for the development of competition, is to change the definition of natural monopoly. We need to abolish the law “On natural monopolies”. A new definition of a natural monopoly should be a standard Chapter in the law “On competition”. Unfortunately, our legislative initiative remains without movement for 10 years. Monopoly live well, they want to live well and further, the poetWMD, oppose any change.
— a Number of state institutions of development have become entrepreneurs. So, the Corporation House.Of the Russian Federation, created to support housing, instead of handing out money through agent banks, has created the Bank “House.Of the Russian Federation”, which in just six years has entered the top 10 mortgage banks. Or VEB, is created in particular to support small and medium-sized businesses, and gives money through the “granddaughter” — the SME Bank. As FAS responds to these conflicts of interest?
— worldwide public development institutions engaged in infrastructure development. They often Finance projects which, because of its loss are not interesting to private companies. And Russia is no exception. We were able to legally oblige institutions to engage in development projects in the interests of citizens and the economy. I agree that the appearance of a new niche Bank — a bad sign for the competition. Bank “Building.Of the Russian Federation” appeared due to major changes in the mortgage market. It was necessary to solve problems of the deceived shareholders and to stimulate housing construction. The new rules and the additional requirements was not acceptable to commercial banks because of their increased credit risks. It took the help of state institutions with their huge possibilities for budget financing, guarantees and reserve funds. This is a special case. We quickly intervene in the process when the state institutions of development of the market and begin to unreasonably compete with private players.
— As with the development of competition relates to the principle of tariff regulation, in particular in the housing sector?
— In the 90-ies in the field of housing there was a kind of plutocracy. Practiced according to the then tariff policy of “inflation plus” monopoly supplier of electricity, heat, gas, water, under various pretexts inflated rates, they built resorts and palaces. And only a few years ago began trying to eliminate these outrages. Five years ago, the government started to claim the so-called marginal rates. When the FAS is entrusted to tariff regulation, we have adopted the limit indexes that cannot be overcome by anyone without the permission of the government. Change has not always proceeded smoothly. Annually we recorded in the regions about 2 thousand cases, when the local authorities on the basis of laws written in the 90-ies, increased their tariffs as they wanted to whomever he wanted. One company, for example, a thousand percent, and the other two. Regional energy commissions have been his favorites. This special relationship we stopped. In the past year we have identified about 50 cases do reasonable increase of tariffs. But in 2 thousand cases, the increase was qualified as arbitrariness. Often monopolists are buying services from a specially selected “friendly” vendors at inflated prices. Then the additional “burden” crooks broadcast in the tariff. Almost every month, the competition authorities and Wrecks take about 100 decisions to reduce rates below inflation. To radically change the situation, the FAS has suggested to the President and the government to move in the tariff policy on the principle of “inflation minus”, promoting prudent and economical providers of such services. And it was supported.
— Except for public utilities one of the most problematic for FAS — pricing of gasoline. Don’t you think that this area it is time to liberalize, we finally saw not only growth, but also lower prices at the pump?
It was a serious choice that was made 2 years ago. Prices on the world oil market have very high volatility. Simply put, it jump up to $120 per barrel, falling to $8. To be independent from such fluctuations, on the orders of President more than 10 years ago created a national welfare Fund, and was later introduced to the domestic refineries so-called reverse excise — damper, we offered 7 years ago. What is its essence? When the price of oil on the world market increases, the damper inhibits the growth of prices in the domestic market. When the price falls, the government therefore reduces excise duty for Russian oil refineries, so they are not ruined. However, the damper is not universal. When prices at the exchanges grow, the amount that small companies not included in the vertically integrated oil companies (VINK), strongly sags. Therefore from the point of view of taxation required additions. In other words, the damper needs to “tighten”. Then we can expect the stabilization of the price tags at the gas station.
How crippled the competitive environment in our country, the coronavirus pandemic, which many businesses have had to go cap in hand to the state?
— because of the pandemic, the whole of the economy was in a difficult position. Particularly affected small businesses, which should be the basis for the stability of any economy. Namely, a massive enterprise — the future of our country. The government, as you know, proposed tax and rent holidays, soft loans. But these measures proved insufficient. Now the consumer market revived, began to restore the functioning of cafe and restaurants. But many enterprises from the service sector are still in a state of deep depression. Very badly affected air travel, leisure, tourism and hospitality. Because of the pandemic, people simply stopped using these services. Due to our reserve funds is required, in fact, to restart the economy that happening now before our eyes. But you need to maintain enterprise. That is, before to milk a cow, it must be fed.
— the “MK” conducted an investigation revealing illegal trafficking of Chinese rapid tests for antibodies to the coronavirus. Despite the ban of Roszdravnadzor, they were sold in pharmacies. Having found on the website of pharmacy direct advertising of these tests, we were sent to your office a detailed request and a link to the investigation published on our website. Pre-press service said that the service will consider the position of Roszdravnadzor and Rospotrebnadzor. Have you received responses from stakeholder agencies and what is the position of the FAS of unfair advertising of these tests?
— a Significant portion of cases, we excite, on the basis of the offences that have been discovered by journalists and written about it. For this I want to say a huge thank you. Yes, we got an explanation of Rospotrebnadzor and Roszdravnadzor that the use of the test system against COVID-19 can only qualified medical personnel with appropriate licenses. This means that selling to the citizens of rapid tests in commercial networks is a violation of law. And with your input, we prepare the appropriate antitrust case, which will soon be filed, investigated and the guilty will suffer punishment for it. It is clear that people who do not have appropriate medical qualifications, can in the alarm state to commit a tragic error and harm your health and the health of loved ones. Therefore, I urge all citizens to do rapid tests in the respective health facilities. Thank God, in Moscow and across Russia enough of them.
— Some unusual cases of FAS, do you remember the most?
— Remember a landmark case. Among them is the series of fines for vertically integrated companies. In 2007-2010 years the major oil companies paid a total budget antitrust fine totaling 20 billion rubles. At that time it was the 6th largest fine in history of antitrust prosecution all over the world, since the NINETEENTH century. That’s when the oil companies began to realize that they will suffer huge losses if they continue to misbehave. Also, remember the cases brought against Google and Microsoft. We first made this decision against multinational IT giants. Then Google was fined $3 billion in the EU. I should add that we have received a lot of positive practices in the framework of cooperation of Antimonopoly authorities of BRICS. China, India, Brazil, South Africa and Russia control nearly 50% of global markets sales. When we combine efforts, we listen very carefully to all the transnational corporations.
— During a pandemic, the Government has embarked on derregulirovanie and reduction of administrative pressure on business, but the FAS in these circumstances, insists on tighter control and supervision. What caused it?
Our proposals related to the strengthening of the supervision only in the digital monopolies that benefited from the regime of self-isolation. We wanted to have adequate methods to curb, if necessary, their appetites. It is in the IT industry a large number of cartel checks on the background of the pandemic. But we in fact had good reason: we wanted to exclude coronaries practice of collusion on food and medicines, which were sold in the online stores. I want to take this opportunity to Express the deepest respect for the owners and managers of pharmacy chains and supermarkets in the difficult period proved beyond praise. But to behave with dignity, not all were able. Nevertheless, it is important for consumers and for society as a whole to identify those individual offenders who used the overall alarming situation in order to illegally to boost his profits.
