ERDEM-NEWSLETTER-2018-metin

87 COMPETITION LAW has become more difficult to change suppliers for consumers due to the activities of the distribution companies andASCs, and the activities of the independent supply companies (ISCs) have been aggravated, it has not opened an investigation. This practice of the Competition Authority was heavily criticized at the time, as the allegations made concerned competitive violations that can deeply affect the liberaliza- tion process in the electricity sector. By the year 2016, the Competi- tion Authority decided to open an investigation in relation to the same allegation that it had not yet commenced any investigation, nor had it provided any opinion. Allegations that were discussed in the CK and Enerjisa Decisions Claims that are dealt with in both decisions can be considered as abuse of dominant positions, in general. These allegations may be summarized as aggravation of the activities of competitor suppliers, aggregation of the transition of the eligible consumers to the ISCs, and discrimination in favor of the ASCs. In particular, it is possible to make some determinations as to how the Competition Authority assessed these actions through the CK decision, and justified the pub- lished decision. The Competition Authority has examined issues such as sharing of data that is qualified as strategic information with ASCs, distribution companies’ aggregation of the activities of other suppliers in order to provide an advantage to ASCs, and the use of employees of distribution companies in the field of retail electricity commerce, in detail. Similarly, claims regarding incomplete or incorrect meter readings of the non-paying consumers who supply electricity from ISCs, and that the ISC’s customer information has been shared with the ASCs by the distribution companies, are amongst violation claims that are examined in the aforementioned decisions. Definition of the Relevant Market and Determination of the Dominant Position In the aforementioned decisions, the Competition Authority fol- lows a different approach from the related market definitions in its previous decisions, especially in the retail electricity trading market. The Competition Authority has made much narrower market defini-