Fair Trade Commission Chair Prioritizes Support for Navigating EU Regulations

[Leaders Times] On December 4, in Paris, France, Han Ki-jeong, chair of the Korean Fair Trade Commission (KFTC), spearheaded a crucial meeting with representatives from prominent Korean companies poised to penetrate the European market.

This pivotal gathering, a first since Han's appointment, saw participation from leaders of six Korean corporations, including Samsung Electronics and Hanwha Solutions. The session was centered on delineating the implications of the newly implemented Digital Market Act and the emerging guidelines on supply chain due diligence, pertinent to Korean enterprises in Europe.

Chairman Han meticulously outlined the potential impacts of these regulations on Korean firms and actively solicited feedback on the challenges and suggestions these companies face in the European market.

The Digital Market Act, a focal point of discussion, targets major digital platform companies. It categorizes certain large platform operators as "gatekeepers," subjecting them to unique regulatory measures. These gatekeepers are mandated to avoid unauthorized data harvesting from third-party services and to eschew favoring their own services, extending beyond existing competition laws.

Effective since May, the Act led global platforms like Google and Apple to acknowledge their gatekeeper status to the EU. The EU Commission, consequently, designated six entities - Google, Apple, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and ByteDance (TikTok's parent company from China) as gatekeepers on September 6. Samsung Electronics, though it pre-emptively declared compliance with gatekeeper criteria, was ultimately not included in the EU Commission's final list. The FTC, acknowledging the ongoing debate over domestic platforms' gatekeeper status, committed to monitoring developments and enhancing understanding of the Digital Market Act's specifics.

The meeting also delved into the "Business Sustainability Due Diligence Guidelines." Aimed at unifying EU standards for supply chain due diligence, these guidelines emphasize human rights and environmental protection. Passed by the EU Parliament in June, the final draft is anticipated by year's end, following deliberations among the EU Parliament, Commission, and Council.

Upon implementation, companies entering the EU market will need to assess and manage their supply chain's impact on human rights and the environment. Non-compliance could lead to civil liability and fines. Korean companies expressed concerns over potential fair trade law breaches, like "undue management interference," in executing these due diligences. The FTC plans to mitigate these apprehensions through proactive public relations and educational initiatives.

Participants urged a collaborative approach between public and private sectors to address shared challenges, highlighting the usefulness of information on global competition policy trends from the FTC and EU competition forums.

Concluding the meeting, Chairman Han vowed to reflect the field's input in future policies, emphasizing the necessity for prompt and informed responses to economic instability and international regulatory systems to safeguard legitimate business pursuits.

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