Competition, Fairness and Change
After a welcome address by Rupert Sausgruber (WU Rector) and impulses from Gabriel Felbermayr (WIFO Director), Natalie Harsdorf (General Director of FCA) and Klaus Gugler (WU Professor), the economist Tomaso Duso (Professor at the German Institute for Economic Research and Chairman of the Monopolies Commission) gave an overview of the development of European competition over the past 25 years.
"The most pressing economic policy problem in Austria and the EU is the low productivity growth, which is caused by various factors, including the intensity of competition. A stronger promotion of competition could both increase productivity and have a positive impact on the purchasing power of the population", explained WIFO Director Gabriel Felbermayr.
"Europe is at a turning point on many important issues and faces many challenges. A well-designed competition policy and efficient enforcement can make a significant contribution to sustainable economic growth. However, this also requires an active discourse, including a competition of the best ideas", said Natalie Harsdorf, General Director of FCA.
"Strict and coherent competition policy is necessary for the competitiveness of national economies", said Klaus Gugler, Professor at WU Vienna.
Duso's talk was followed by a policy roundtable on the topic of pro-competitive economic policy. Gabriel Felbermayr, Wolfgang Urbantschitsch (CEO of E-Control) and Silvia Hruška-Frank (Director of the Vienna Chamber of Labour) discussed this topic. The discussion was moderated by Angelika Kramer (Trend magazine).
Afterwards, the General Director of the Norwegian Competition Authority, Tina Søreide, held a keynote speech on the topic of competition and industrial policy, offering considerations and experiences from Norway.
In the Leadership Roundtable, Natalie Harsdorf, Thibaud Vergé (Vice President of the French Competition Authority), Martha Martinez Licetti (Head of the Global Markets, Competition and Technology Department of the World Bank) and Antonio Capobianco (Deputy Head of the Competition Department) discussed visions for competition law enforcement. Lewis Crofts from the trade magazine MLex moderated this discussion.
Afterwards, the focus was turned to the topic of "Data". Rupprecht Podszun from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf and member of the Monopolies Commission gave a keynote speech on the increasing use of AI and the effects on competitiveness and fairness in the context of the Digital Market Act. Paulo Trezentos, CEO of Aptoide, an alternative Android app store, presented a business case and offered an entrepreneurial perspective on the topic of digital regulation. Finally, Viktoria Robertson (Professor at WU Vienna) moderated the final discussion on competition policy in the digital transformation with Stefan Ruech (Head of Department at BWB), Klaus Gugler and Thomas Kramler (Head of Department at the European Commission).
