In order to implement the Party's 20 principles, implement the newly amended Anti-Monopoly Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the New Anti-Monopoly Law), to further strengthen and improve anti-monopoly law enforcement, to stop abusing administrative power to exclude and restrict competition, and to protect fair competition in the market; to strengthen and improve anti-monopoly supervision and law enforcement, and effectively prevent and stop abusing dominant market position; to further strengthen and improve anti-monopoly supervision and law enforcement, effectively regulate monopoly agreements and protect fair market competition; to further standardize and optimize the anti-monopoly declaration and review procedures for the concentration of business operators, on March 10, 2023, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued the following four supporting rules for the New Anti-monopoly Law, and which shall become effective on April 15, 2023:

1. Provisions on Stopping Acts of Excluding and Restricting Competition through Abusing Administrative Power;

2. Prohibition of Abusing Dominant Market Position Provisions;

3. Provisions on Monopoly Prohibition Agreements; and,

4. Regulations on the Examination of Concentration of Business Operators.

The Main Contents of the Four Supporting Rules for the New Anti-monopoly Law

1. Provisions on Stopping Acts of Excluding and Restricting Competition Through Abusing Administrative Power mainly adjusted the following contents:

(1) Provided further details on unlawful acts: The illegal acts include abusing administrative power to exclude and restrict competition by signing cooperation agreements and memorandums with operators, forcing non-local business operators to invest or set up branches locally, excluding or restricting business operators from participating in business activities other than tendering and bidding, and forcing business operators to engage in monopolistic activities, as stipulated in the Anti-Monopoly Law, in a disguised way;

(2) Further clarified the requirements for law enforcement: Combined with the revision of the new Anti-Monopoly Law, new requirements have been added that relevant units or individuals shall cooperate with investigations. Further, administrative organs and organizations, authorized by laws and regulations, with the function of managing public affairs shall report relevant corrections in writing to higher authorities and anti-monopoly law enforcement agencies;

(3) Added law enforcement interview provisions: The new Anti-monopoly Law introduced an interview system for law enforcement. The Provisions further specified the contents, procedures and methods of the interview, enhanced the operability of the system, ensured the implementation of the system, and enhanced the effectiveness of law enforcement against abusing administrative power to exclude and restrict competition;

(4) Added crime reporting functions between different organs: During investigations, if public officials are found violating their duty or committing crimes relating to their duties, anti-monopoly law enforcement agencies shall prompt transfer such evidence found to other inspection and supervision organs;

(5) Added content for fair competition review: In the general provisions of the new Anti-monopoly Law, new provisions have been added on improving the review system for fair competition. The examination system of fair competition is an important system arrangement to regulate administrative behavior in advance; and,

(6) Enriched the content of competition advocacy: In the practice of preventing abusing administrative power to exclude and restrict competition and antitrust law enforcement, most illegal behaviors are caused by some administrative organs and organizations authorized by laws and regulations to manage public affairs who do not fully understand the fundamental position of competition policy and the importance of fair competition in the market. The government's "visible hand" improperly interferes with the "invisible hand" of the market, hindering the competition mechanism. Therefore, it is necessary to further strengthen competition advocacy and vigorously promote and cultivate the culture of fair competition.

2. Prohibition of Abusing Dominant Market Position Provisions mainly involve the following four aspects:

(1) Improving the anti-monopoly system and rules in the platform economy sector. The applicable rules of relevant systems in the platform economy sector are further clarified, with new terms added: "operators with dominant market position shall not abuse their dominant market position by using data, algorithms, technologies and platform rules", "transaction amount", "transaction quantity" and "ability to control flow" are added as factors for determining the dominant market position of operators in the field of platform economy;

(2) Improving rules for determining abusing dominant market position: added dominant market position basis, market dominant position consideration facts, market concentration consideration facts, "joint behavior of operators" as the primary condition for two or more operators’ with dominant market position, "unfair price" consideration facts, disguised circumstances of refusing to transact with the counterparty, other considerations for assessing "unfair" and "just cause" when determining abusing dominant market position;

(3) Provided further details on the investigation procedures: to better protect the informants' right to know, anti-monopoly law enforcement agencies shall publish the results of reporting; specify the conditions for filing cases of abusing dominant market position and clarify the circumstances for filing; to protect the rights and interests of the parties, the anti-monopoly law enforcement agency shall inform the parties concerned in writing and fully listen to their opinions before making an administrative penalty decision; utilize standardized suspension of investigation, termination of investigation, interview system; and,

(4) Improved legal responsibilities, clarified the responsibilities of illegal situations of anti-monopoly law enforcement agencies staff.

3. Provisions on Monopoly Prohibition Agreements mainly involves the following six aspects:

(1) Further clarification on the criteria for determining competitive relations: defined relevant markets and clarification of the factors for demand substitution and supply substitution, added rules about potential competitors, and clarified that "operators with competitive relations" include actual competitors as well as potential competitors with the feasibility of entering the relevant market within a certain period of time;

(2) Improved the relevant regulations on the digital economy: "algorithm and platform rules" to calculate the price constitute a fixed price monopoly agreement; "data" and other elements are applicable in segmentation of sales market and raw material procurement; enumerated the ways that operators reach horizontal and vertical monopoly agreements by using data, algorithms, technologies and platform;

(3) Detailed rules for determining vertical monopoly agreements, added vertical price monopoly agreement defense right and safe harbor;

(4) Detailed the rules on organizing and helping to reach monopoly agreements, defined the identification criteria and provided lenient guidance; 

(5) Further standardized investigation procedures, further standardized law enforcement procedures for monopoly cases, such as filing cases, notification of administrative penalties and decisions on administrative penalties, and fully protected the rights of parties to make statements, defend or request hearings; reported the result to the informants to better protect the informants’ right to know; further refined the leniency application and identification procedures, and standardized the procedures for suspending investigations and determining immunity; and,

(6) Improving legal responsibility: legal liability is adjusted according to the new Anti-Monopoly Law; individual responsibilities are imposed on the legal representative, main responsible person and direct responsible person of the business operator with the range of application for mitigation or exemption from punishment, and illegal situations of staff of anti-monopoly law enforcement agencies.

4. Regulations on the Examination of Concentration of Business Operators mainly involve the following five aspects:

(1) Consolidating the achievements of revising the anti-Monopoly Law and clarifying the rules governing the application of relevant systems, adding time limit for the concentration review of business operators’ "clock stop", and dealing with the concentration of business operators which did not meet the filing standards;

(2) Improving the classification and classification review system, and the effectiveness of anti-monopoly review; 

(3) Clarifying important concepts: the judgment factors of controlling rights; the judgment factors of concentration implementation; calculation of operator's turnover; specification of review procedures related concepts;

(4) Clarifying the responsibilities and obligations of relevant entities and improving the effectiveness of law enforcement; standardizing the behavior of the declaration and declaration agents; improving the rules governing the appointment of trustees; strengthening the protection of personal privacy and personal information; and,

(5) Improving the legal liability and enhancing the deterrent effect.

The Following Principles Are Observed from the Above Amendments

1. Principle of Being Problem-oriented. Amendments are problems targeted and approached in a scientific way, and focused on summarizing and consolidating the past experience in law enforcement, solving problems and improving the insufficient authority in law enforcement. The amendments lay a solid institutional foundation for further enhancing the level of law enforcement and enhancing the effectiveness of law enforcement.

2. Principle of Systematic Implementation.  Administrative guidance, administrative interviews, and administrative suggestions are coordinated to strive to improve and strengthen the pre-event, event, post-event, all-directional regulations and constraints, and to clarify relevant responsibilities and measures. Anti-monopoly law enforcement agencies shall perform self-constraints and self-corrections during law enforcement procedures. Authorities at higher levels shall handle and urge rectification in accordance with the law.  The publics shall actively participate in supervision so as to make the legal system more scientific, more operational and more responsive to the public’s expectations.

3. Principle of Open-door Legislation. All relevant parties are fully informed to participate in the legislation to express their views, and to supervise the amendments of the four rules. The legislative officials extensively solicited opinions throughout the whole process of drafting the rules.