Marginal costs

Costs born by a firm of producing an additional unit of output. Marginal costs are a function of variable costs only, since fixed costs do not vary with output. Source: Glossary of terms used in EU competition policy, Antitrust and control of concentrations, European...

Market power

Strength of a firm in a particular market. In basic economic terms, market power is the ability of firms to price above marginal cost and for this to be profitable. In competition analysis, market power is determined with the help of a structural analysis of the...

Market share

Measure for the relative size of a firm in an industry or market, in terms of the proportion of total output, sales or capacity it accounts for. In addition to profits, one of the frequently cited business objec- tives of firms is to increase market share. This is...

Merger (glossary)

A concentration is the legal combination of two or more undertakings, by merger or acquisition. While such operations may have a positive impact on the market, they may also appreciably restrict competition, by creating or strengthening a dominant player. In order to...

Merger control procedure

The merger control procedure under EC law is laid down in the merger regulation, and in the implementing regulation. The merger regulation confers on the Commission the sole authority to assess concentrations with a Community dimension. Concentrations, which meet the...