The Competition Council, in partnership with the Polish and Latvian competition authorities and the OECD, is launching a technical assistance project aimed at studying and improving competitiveness in the digital markets of Lithuania, Latvia, and Poland.

The project kick-off event in Vilnius involved representatives from the OECD, the European Commission, and the implementing competition authorities discussing the project's objectives, activities, and opportunities for cooperation.

The Chairperson of the Competition Council highlighted the importance of ensuring compliance with competition law in digital markets, mentioning past investigations, joint monitoring efforts with Latvia, and the development of e-Commerce Guidelines for Lithuanian companies.

Through the project, a market study will be conducted on online marketplaces in the three countries to identify key players, activities, potential competition issues, and provide recommendations to address them, while also offering training and seminars to strengthen institutional capacities.

The project aims to establish rules to maintain openness and competitiveness in digital markets, especially for smaller entities not covered by the Digital Markets Act, as effective competition enforcement in digital markets requires detailed market knowledge, significant resources, and time.

The project is expected to last 21 months, providing research-based recommendations tailored to the unique challenges and opportunities in each market.