Competition Law International October
Unilateral conduct under Korean competition law
- unilateral refusal to deal in the POSCO case
Yong Seok Ahn
Lee & Ko, Seoul
ysa@leeko.com
Introduction
There is a great deal of confusion in Korea surrounding the regulation of unilateral conduct. This article will focus on the regulation in Korea of a specific type of unilateral conduct known as the 'unilateral refusal to deal' which was the main issue in the POSCO case.
The unilateral refusal to deal is categorised into two types:(i) a unilateral refusal to deal by a market-dominant enterprise described under Article 3-2 of the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act(MRFTA) and the supplemental regulations thereto (the 'Refusal by a Market-Dominant Enterprise') and (ii) a unilateral refusal to deal by and enterprise(ie, a market-dominant enterprise or a non market-dominant enterprise) which constitutes a general unfair trade practice under Article 23, paragraph 1, subparagraph 1 MRFTA and the supplemental regulations thereto (the 'Genenral Refusal').